Why Does It HAVE To Be You?
by PsychoticSushi
Summary: Almost two years have passed since Kiera was dragged along for the roller coaster ride known as Sora's life. And just when she's started to get back on track, the fact that her job as a Gatekeeper is never finished has come back to slap her in the face. And boy, does it slap hard.
1. Reunited Doesn't Feel All That Good

**Well, I'm back again! With a sequel, which I know for a fact the majority of you wanted. Whether this is the SUBJECT you wanted it about, I'm not all that sure, but it's how I went, so I hope you enjoy it!**

**This chapp might be a little iffy because A.) It's the first chapp, and I SUCK when it comes to the first chapter to ANYTHING. I'm not sure why. (shrugs). And B.) I'm totally winging it, I have no game to go on. So it just feels a little weird to not go on Youtube to see what worlds or dialogue I'm working with next xD. **

**Well, either way, here's the start to the sequel. Read, review, and enjoy! :D**

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* * *

**

"...So now you get it?_ That's_ why we need them."

Riku nodded. "Yes Your Majesty, I understand that part, but...Why Sora and the others? Can't we just _individually_ seek them out?"

King Mickey shook his head. "I'm afraid that might not work. You've gotta remember that these guys will have no clue what a Gatekeeper _is_, and I doubt they'll listen to anyone but a fellow Gatekeeper. So that means we need Kiera. ...And we both know there's only one person that'll convince her to do it."

Riku sighed. "But Your Majesty, they haven't –"

"I know."

"They'll be at each other's throats."

He laughed. "Riku, they were before!"

"But..."

"If all else fails, we have _mature_ ways to handle their fights. But in the meantime, this threat is NOT going away, the Heartless are multiplying, and we _need_ the others. ...None of us are fully complete without them. Just like Sora and Kiera aren't while they've been apart. Sending them on another quest can only prove good for us all, I'm sure of it," the King declared confidently.

Riku looked down at the plan they'd drawn out, shaking his head. "First you summon _me_ to your realm instead of Sora, and now we're sending him out with Kiera again. ...He's gonna want to kill me."

The King laughed at that one before pausing and calling out, "Yes, you can both go with them, so come on in here!".

Riku sweatdropped as the doors flung open and Goofy and Donald bounded into the room. They stood at stiff attention by the King's sides, and he smiled. "At ease, boys."

"You're really letting us go?" Goofy asked hopefully.

"If I didn't, who would keep the peace?" King Mickey replied, making them all nod in agreement. "That's true..."

"Welp, I guess it's settled, then!"

Riku, Donald, and Goofy stood at attention and saluted, nodding once. "RIGHT, YOUR MAJESTY!"

As they left the room, Riku looked at Donald and Goofy skeptically. "...Are you two sure you know what you're signing up for?"

The two exchanged a look before shrugging. "If we could handle them before..."

"No doubt we can handle 'em again!" Goofy finished, and Donald nodded. They all just looked at each other before sighing and drooping a little. "...This is gonna be a long quest, isn't it, Donald?"

"Probably so!"

_**

* * *

**_

_**LATER****...**_

Sora sighed, staring down at the Algebra textbook as if it were a foreign language. "...I still don't really get this...I think Kiera's was a little easier than this..."

He winced after mentioning her, and instinctively glanced at the clock, then the calendar. Not that it was very helpful, he was very aware of what day and time it was. And how long it'd been since he'd seen her.

His temple throbbed as he realized he'd been leaning forward a little, causing the pencil's lead to break. "Crap." As he searched for a better pencil, not feeling like fighting with a pencil sharpener, he wondered what she was doing.

_Well, I know what she's NOT doing – what she hasn't been doing since she first left. Coming back._

Sora couldn't help but feel mad every time he thought about it. Generally, he was a really forgiving person, sure. But since she'd been gone, he just didn't feel right. He felt kind of like half of him was missing, and he didn't like it. So he chose to be mad instead of admitting he felt a little sad.

It seemed to work just fine for him. Kairi, too. She claimed she had an off feeling about Kiera from the start, but Sora had a hunch that she just wanted to get to know Kiera better. So _she _chose to be mad, too. At least Riku and Kairi were back, and they were all together again. It felt good for things to be back to normal.

He perked up after hearing his front door being flung open. "O-Oh, hi, is Sora here?" Kairi asked excitedly, breathing heavily. "Oh, hi Kairi! He's upstairs."

"Thanks!"

Sora furrowed his brows thoughtfully, wondering what could be going on that had her all worked up. Only one thing. Well, maybe two, but he knew it wasn't because Kiera was here. S_o that leaves..._

Sure enough, she bounded up the stairs and into his room, holding up a rolled-up message. "Sora! A letter came from the King!"

He practically flew out of his chair, eyes wide. "The King?"

Kairi nodded quickly, breathing heavy. "Yeah!" She handed it to him and he unrolled it. He was just about to read it when they heard his door fling open again. "Is Sora here?" Riku asked in a rush.

Sora sweatdropped as they heard his mom sigh heavily. "Up in his room, Riku. Kairi's up there, too."

"Right." Sora had barely had enough time to read his name at the top of the letter when Riku was in his room, grinning. "Hey! Great news!"

"Yeah, we've got good news, too," Kairi replied with a smile. "The King sent a letter."

"I know, I can probably tell you the gist of what it says."

Curious, Sora set the letter down on his bed. "What's up?"

Riku cleared his throat. "Well...We're all going on another quest."

"When you say all..."

"I mean you, me, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi."

"Me?" Kairi repeated at the same time Sora blurted "Whaaaat?". They exchanged a look before looking at Riku with confusion. "All of us?"

"Together?"

"Doing what?"

"Well, in a nutshell, we've got some people to find. Other Gatekeepers."

"There're more of them?" Sora wondered, less than thrilled at the thought. Riku laughed anxiously. "Oh, right. Before we set out to find them, though, you kinda have a bit of a side-quest of your own."

"Please don't tell me..."

"We need Kiera."

"...I was afraid you'd say that," he said dully, glancing at his calendar again. Kairi looked a bit unenthused herself. "...Is that absolutely necessary? I mean, we haven't –"

"I tried to convince the King otherwise, but he insisted we needed her. After he explained it and I thought about it for a while, I had to agree. Who the hell else could convince complete strangers to come along for the ride besides someone that was in the same boat as them not too long ago?"

"Actually, it WAS pretty long ago," Kairi commented.

Sora sighed, but soon brightened and flashed a grin. "Hey, look on the bright side! Absence makes the heart grow fonder, right?"

"...Yeah," they agreed with sweatdrops. "It sure does."

They then heard his door being flung open downstairs yet again, and his mom shouted "WHO IS IT?" from the kitchen, her tone laced with annoyance.

"Du-oh, sorry to bother ya, ma'am, but is Sora here?"

Sora brightened even more, and Riku and Kairi exchanged a grin. He ran down the stairs to see Donald and Goofy standing in the doorway. "Donald! Goofy!"

"SORA!" they greeted, running and practically tackling him. They laughed and hugged. "I haven't seen you in so long!"

"We've been so busy!"

"But we're back _now_," Goofy pointed out cheerfully as they helped Sora up. Donald nodded just as cheerfully. "Yeah! We're comin' with ya to get Kiera!"

Sora drooped all over again, but quickly recovered. Kairi and Riku sweatdropped as he managed to get out through a rather fake smile, "Kieraaaa. Right, we get to see Kiera again. She's, uh...She's really tagging along again. ...Greeeaat!"

"...Riku?"

"Yeah, Kairi."

"This isn't gonna end well...Is it."

"Doesn't look that way."

_**

* * *

**_

_**MEANWHILE****...**_

"Alright, Mrs. Rosen, I hear ya loud and clear. Next Thursday, two o'clock. Yes ma'am. Yes ma'am. See you then. Alright, have a nice night." She hung up the phone, wondering why a seventy-five-year-old woman would call in the middle of the night to reschedule.

And why the hell she'd call the ER section. Kiera shook her head and wrote it down on a sticky note, and the phone was ringing again before she had even put the pen down.

"Saint Francis Bartlett, this is the Emergency Room."

_**"Yeah, um, I'd like a large pepperoni with crazy bread and a large Mountain Dew, aaand –"**_

"We don't sell pizza. We sell syringes, sterilized needles, IV drips, tweezers, and other objects of questionable legality."

_**"Um..."**_

"This is an ER, not a pizza joint."

_**"...Oh. Nevermind."**_

Kiera rolled her eyes as they hung up, shaking her head as she continued to aimlessly scribble on some scratch paper. Then she looked down and realized it looked suspiciously like Sora's crown necklace.

"...Dammit," she muttered, scratching it out furiously before sighing and glancing at the clock: two in the morning. She looked at the calendar: May fourteenth. "Could be worse," Cheryl commented as she continued to sort through patients' files, looking for a certain one as if her life depended on it.

"Oh?"

"Yeah. It could be Christmas. We're _packed _on Christmas."

"People shootin' each other for the last piece of fruitcake?"

"Naw, Kiera, that's horrible! ...Usually it's the last steak or fighting over the last toys on the shelves Christmas Eve. Lots of 'em were Tickle Me Elmos a couple years ago," she replied casually as she found the file, slammed the cabinet shut, and practically ran down the hall to find the doctor she'd been sent on an errand for.

Kiera laughed to herself before looking back down at the work she'd brought with her. Schoolwork, that is. She'd been homeschooled ever since she came back, not exactly looking forward to the daydreaming she'd do in class along with the stares she'd get during and inbetween.

According to Morgan, people had officially dubbed her Houdini. Fantastic. Either way, thanks to being homeschooled (or self-schooled, rather), she was still in the same grade she would have been without being kidnapped.

Thankfully.

Although, maybe it didn't really matter now. She didn't exactly have very many school friends now, did she?

Kiera looked at the clock yet again, desperate to find something else to do besides her schoolwork, and sighed in relief when she saw she only had fifteen minutes left on her shift. "Oh thank God! Biology, you can wait until...until...well, screw you," she muttered, putting her books back in her bag.

Unfortunately, she couldn't just say "Oh, it'll take me fifteen minutes to get outta these scrubs, I should just go take care of that NOW." Nope, she had to wait until her fifteen minutes were up to even _think_ about heading for the women's locker rooms.

So she sat there enjoying the normal ambiance of the ER: kids screaming every now and then, monitors beeping, gurneys being wheeled by, phones ringing, etcetera. And she didn't get a single call.

So maybe Kiera should have seen it coming when fourteen minutes had passed and someone walked in rather awkwardly. Almost as if they were trying not to move the right side of their body at all.

"Um, sir. Sir. SIR!" she shouted, waving to get his attention. His eyes widened even more, and he made his way over to her. "Oh, thank God. I need to see a doctor RIGHT NOW."

"What's wrong, sir?" she asked distractedly, getting the pen out from behind her ear and snatching the usual papers patients had to fill out.

She glanced up from the clipboard she'd put them on when he didn't respond. He looked around almost suspiciously before whispering, "There's a fucking spider stuck in my ear."

"...What?" she asked with a sweatdrop.

"THERE'S A GODDAMN FUCKING _SPIDER _STUCK IN MY EAR, LADY! YOU DEAF?" he screeched, sounding almost hysterical.

Kiera glanced at the papers before nodding and leading the way. "...I'll fill these out. I'll get you some help right away, alright?"

"Thank you. Um, please hurry, it's been scratching around for an hour now!"

"Why didn't you come sooner if there's a goddamn spider in your ear?" Kiera couldn't help but wonder. "Be-CAUSE, I was down four-wheelin' by the River. ...Um, Wolf River, that is. It took me an hour just to realize why I couldn't hear as good in one ear once I was done."

"Oh," she said simply, wondering if her wince had been noticeable when he'd mentioned the Wolf River. _Thanks a bunch, Dad, you really DO still have an effect on me._

Kiera sighed and ran for the receptionist desk after noticing every single patient's room filled with at least one doctor and assistant. "Well, crap, they're all busy on this wing. Hold on, I've got a quicker way," she said distractedly, pressing a button on the phone before picking it up off the hook.

**"We need a doctor to the lobby right away – there's a man needing immediate medical attention," **she practically shouted into the phone.

The man waddled over to the other side of the reception desk, looking rather anxious. Judging by the twitching he was doing at fifteen-second intervals, the spider was more antsy than he was.

After about eight twitches, Kiera sighed in exasperation and opened up the Internet. "You know what? Sir, I'll get it outta your ear. Gimme _juuuust _a second."

"What're you going to do?" he asked anxiously.

"Google it, of course. Works just as well as a doctor's visit half the time, if you look at all the answers and figure out which one's the most common," she explained distractedly as she typed in "how to get a spider out of your ear". Because simply typing in "spider in ear" would get WAY too many images she didn't want on her browser.

After a few moments, she nodded and dove under the desk for the First-Aid Kit. "Alright, this is gonna be _reaaal _easy." She grabbed some cotton balls out of the kit, and after making sure no one was looking, summoned some Jack Daniels.

"OKAY!" she said with slight panting, not feeling very up to getting a spider out of someone's _ear_.

"Is that Jack Daniels for me, or the spider?" he asked with a smirk, although it was obvious he really needed it.

Kiera smiled. "Tell ya what, if this works, you can have what's left. Okay, all I'm gonna do is pour some alcohol down your ear. Either the spider'll scurry out and THEN we kill it, or it drowns and I pluck it out. If it drowns, I gotta say, it won't be pleasant. If you've felt any pain so far, it'll get worse, and if you haven't, well...I'd brace myself. Are you ready?"

He started to nod, but then he clasped his ear and managed to hiss through gritted teeth, "Yeeaaahhh."

Kiera nodded before popping the top off the bottle of liquor and pouring some down his ear. For a few moments, nothing happened; neither of them moved, and apparently the spider didn't either. Then, out of nowhere, the man let out a groan before twitching again. "It's drowning, it's most definitely drowning!" he practically screamed.

She made a face as he continued to twitch and make his own weird faces, and finally, he relaxed. "I...I think it's dead."

She nodded, summoning a thick pair of tweezers from behind her back. "Alright, I need ya to hold still while I pluck it out. Lean against the counter if you want, it'll make it easier for you."

He did just that, tilting his invaded ear up toward the sky. "Hurry, it's sliding, it's sliding!" he called out frantically, and she practically jabbed the tweezers into his ear. After some careful prodding, the tweezers latched onto a rather thick leg. Kiera pulled it out with a miserable face as the leg started twitching a little, and both her and the man screamed once she pulled the giant spider out and it started furiously trying to escape the tweezers.

"OHMIGOD, KILL IT SORA, KILL IT!" she shouted as the spider fell to the floor and scurried around. She and the man tried to stomp it out, and she was the one to squash it with one of the nurse's shoes she was required to wear; finally, they were useful for something. "Phew...!"

"What's a 'Sora'?" the guy asked, scratching the top of his head in confusion. She looked at him funny, summoning some water from behind the trash can she had dumped what was left of the spider into. "Huh?"

"You were shoutin' for a 'Sora' ta kill it earlier."

She flushed, shaking her head at herself. In her defense, that thing had been _big _enough to be a Heartless. "Just a, uh, friend of mine. Slip of the tongue, that's all."

He shrugged, and she held up the water and cotton balls. "Now to drown out that alcohol and dab it up. After that, I'll get you to a doctor for some meds in case you get an ear infection. Sound good?"

He nodded, and she poured some water down his ear. He made a weird noise, followed up by a weird _face_. "That feels so...so funky."

She couldn't help but giggle a little at that, making the water disappear behind her back before grabbing the cotton balls and dabbing what parts of his ear she could get to. "Lemme know once it's feeling dry."

"Right."

After talking about Memphis football versus Ole Miss football for a while, a doctor finally ran over. "I heard a man needed immediate medical attention!"

They both sweatdropped. "The key word being 'immediate'," the man replied, hissing in pain a little; it seemed the spider had bitten him a couple times. Kiera, lucky to have a job in the first place, for once kept her mouth shut.

"I can take it from here," the doctor told her, moving to grab some cotton balls and pulling an ear light out of his coat pocket. The man shook his head when Kiera stepped aside, throwing away the cotton balls she'd used. "If you don't mind, I think I'd rather this little lady take care of me. She's done a good job so far."

Kiera and the doctor exchanged a look, and finally, the doctor shrugged. "If you insist. While she finishes up, I'll go fill out a prescription for your ear. ...Just what was _wrong _with your ear, exactly?"

"There was a spider in it," the other two said simultaneously. "Oh, alrighty. Um, Missss...Sage," he said after a moment, reading her name tag.

"Yes, Doctor Holbrooke?"

"How'd you treat him?"

"She treated me great – she got me some Jack Daniels," the man replied with a laugh. The doctor clicked his tongue and looked to Kiera, obviously not getting the joke.

Kiera resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "I did what Google told me, sir. Poured some alcohol in his ear and plucked the spider out. Then I poured some water down it to level out the alcohol, and NOW I'm dabbing it dry with the cotton wads."

Doctor Holbrooke nodded. "Ah, good. Very good. Where's the spider now?"

"What's not on my shoe is in the trash," she replied distractedly, dabbing his ear. "I think you've got it all," he said as the doctor wrote something down on his prescription pad and walked down the hall. "I'll be back shortly," he threw over his shoulder.

Kiera and the man poked their heads from behind the corner, waiting until he was out of sight before she handed him the liquor. He handed it back to her. "Here, I doubt you can drink on the job, take a swig 'fore he gets back."

She bit her lip before sighing and taking it. "Dammit, I think I earned it, don't judge me," she said defensively – mainly to herself – before tilting it to her mouth and downing a swig. He laughed as she shook herself quickly upon swallowing it, making a weird face. "First drink, kid?"

She nodded. "Yeah," she choked out, blinking. "How was it?"

"S-Smoooooth," she muttered, summoning some water while he was busy with the bottle of Jack Daniels. "Well, consider this your first Liquor Lesson – never down whiskey in that big a gulp," he said with a laugh. Kiera nodded, gulping down some water. "Lesson learned."

Once Dr. Holbrooke came back, she sighed tiredly. "Well, sir, my shift's over, so..." He nodded, waving her off as he handed the man his prescription. "Yes, yes, go on, get going."

"Have a nice night."

"Mm."

Kiera's temple throbbed, but she just shook her head as she grabbed her jacket and bag. The man waved goodbye to her. "Thanks for all your help, ma'am!"

She smiled. "My momma's the ma'am. I'm just Kiera."

"Jackson."

"Well, Jackson, wear earplugs next time, alright?"

"Will do," he said with another laugh. Kiera smiled to herself as she headed for the women's locker room.

* * *

Once inside, she practically flew out of her sky blue scrubs, kicking off her nurse's shoes and making a face at the spider guts all over her left one. She made the shoes and scrubs disappear, and with a little bit of luck, they'd actually ended up in the wastebasket like she intended.

She slipped on her newly-summoned Hot Topic jeans – black patchwork skinny jeans – and her old blue "OM NOM NOM" tee. Yeah, thanks to summoning, she could just look online for clothes and summon them right to her closet.

Although, she felt like she was stealing when she did that, so she only did that for birthdays, Christmas, Morgan's Hanukah presents, and on days when she was low on cash, food, AND clothes.

Kiera left her hair in the loose ponytail, not feeling like dealing with it. It was windy and about to storm outside anyways, so it would end up in her face and she'd be swatting it away like a moron.

After making her stuff disappear (and already making a mental checklist of all the rooms it could end up in besides her room like she'd wanted), she headed for the main exit. She was heading for the bus stop when a car swerved up in front of her. "Hey, hop in, I've got candy," a low voice said ominously.

Kiera sweatdropped. "Max, that only works so many times."

"...Dammit. A guy's gotta try."

She laughed and hopped into the passenger's seat, looking at him funny as he pulled off. "You _do _know what time it is, right?"

"Yeah, two forty in the morning. Time for Kiera's shift to end. That's why I came to pick her up."

"I could always drive myself," she muttered.

"Yeah, if your car hadn't gotten towed," he said before laughing at her expression. "How'd you know about that?"

"Because you ranted about it for about three hours."

"...Oh."

"So who was driving, you or your mom?"

"Meeee," she admitted with a huff.

"So who am I not gonna ever let drive my car?"

"Meee again."

"Very good! Man, if I had a cookie, I'd give it to you as a reward."

Kiera made a face. "Ugh, don't mention food to me. I just got a spider out of a guy's ear." Max turned to look at her once they reached a red light, hazel eyes widening just a little. _Him and his spider phobia, I don't get it. I mean, they're gross, sure, but..._ "...Come again?"

_**

* * *

**_

_**SEVEN ****MINUTES LATER...**_

"...Well, damn, sounds like work wasn't so boring," he said with a chuckle. Kiera grinned. "It never is. I mean, sure, none of the doctors even know my name, but we know everything about _them_. It's the beauty of being a receptionist; people tell ya all _kinds _of stuff, makes the day go by a little faster. Plus, I know about a bazillion new medical techniques. ...I also happen to know that I should never eat my lunch at work, because you never know what the hell you're gonna see, and odds are it'll come back up," she rambled (like she always did after long shifts at work, which was most likely why Max let her keep going).

She was about to go on, but then she realized she was home. He unlocked the car doors, and she hopped out, heading for her door. "Jeez, how the hell do you have so much energy?" he wondered with a yawn.

"Trust me, Max, I've been on a worse sleep schedule."

"Like when you were gone for all those months?"

She winced before turning to look at him, smiling. "Yeah, like then. But hey, that was forever ago."

"Yeah, but now you're leaving again."

She shrugged. "For, like, two weeks. C'moooon, I _gotta _go."

"Yeah, I'm sure your life just DEPENDS on going to Disney World," he replied with an eyeroll. She huffed defensively. "HEY. I'm going to Florida to see my family, _not _Disney World. ...I'll just...most likely...END UP in Disney, is all."

Max sweatdropped. "...I'm sure THAT'S not according to plan."

"Aw, c'mon, stop nagging me!"

"Someone has to," he said with a grin. She grinned back. "Alright, point taken." The wind picked up, ruffling their auburn and dirty blonde hair. "Well, there Kiera goes...Inside...About to leave tomorrow...Not gonna see Max or Morgan for a good couple weeks...Probably longer, knowing her...Unless she falls and breaks her neck, then she'll come home quicker...Which she's bound to do...Break her neck, that is..." He then sighed dramatically, making her raise her eyebrows at him.

"Break my neck."

"Yeah, break your neck. You're bound to do it."

"Max, you moron, if I break my neck, I can't very well hop the next plane outta there."

He opened his mouth to protest before drooping. "Shit, you're right..."

She laughed and shook her head, and he brightened suddenly. "Guess in that case, you better gimme a proper goodbye."

_Proper goodbye...Well, that's one way to put it. Never heard that one before._

Kiera grinned before striking a Shakespearian Pose. "I bid thee farewell, O' Maximus Moronus." He rolled his eyes, smirking as he grabbed the hand she currently had outstretched dramatically towards him. "Aww, wouldya look at that. Kiera's bluuu-shing."

_Now THAT I've heard before, but not from you._

Before she could defend her alleged blush, he was leaning in, and so she moved a little closer – "KIERAAAA, ARE YOU HOME YET?" her mom called out suddenly, making them both jump and look towards her front door.

Kiera smiled apologetically. "Duty calls." Max pouted slightly, crossing his arms. "You _so _planned that."

She rolled her eyes, kissing his cheek before stomping through her front door. "WHADDAYA WANT _NOW_?" she demanded to know, thunder rumbling outside as if to emphasize her question.

She heard the distinct sound of Max laughing at her expense as he left, and her temple throbbed. _Why does everyone always laugh at poor, little ole me?_

Mom was sitting on the couch, staring intently down at the coffee table. Kiera sweatdropped before walking over and bending slightly to look, hands on her knees. "What's that?"

"A puzzle," she slurred in that slow way of hers. "It's not comin' along all that great."

"What's it supposed to be?"

"A, um...I'm not sure. It's supposed to be in the shape of a cat, and it looks like there's cats INSIDE the cat shape, but...It's not comin' along all that great," she repeated with a decisive nod.

Kiera sweatdropped again; it was currently in the shape of either a giant sushi roll or a giant sideways egg.

"Umm...Well, it LOOKS beautiful, Momma," she said with a pat on her shoulder as she headed for the kitchen for something to eat. Obviously the spider-in-ear situation wasn't as gross once she realized how starving she was.

"Now remember, I'm gonna be gone starting tomorrow –"

"YOU'RE LEAVING WITH THAT BOY AGAIN?" she wailed, already starting to sniffle. Kiera sighed. "Momma, no, I'm –"

"'Cause if you are, you might as well just elope and never come back. You were gone for FOREVER!"

She couldn't help but flush at the thought. "Momma, I'm not eloping with _anyone_, firstly. And secondly, I've already told you, I'm goin' to visit grandmomma and them down in Florida. Remember?"

After a few moments, Momma nodded. "...Right...Right, sorry, I forgot..." Kiera sighed with relief, having been momentarily afraid she'd developed Alzheimer's or something, but her relief was short-lived.

"Say...How is he? That boy of yours?"

"Oh, Max? Momma, he's not my –"

"Naw, I mean that other one. The one who stole my beercan, and you ran off with him? Duh."

Kiera froze, gripping the cabinet door extra hard for a split second before speaking. "...I dunno how he is, Momma. I haven't seen him in almost two years, remember?"

"...Why?"

"Well, because...he's...far away and...Well, goddammit, every time I leave the house _you _freak out!" she accused as if this were all her fault. Which...maybe partially it _was _her mom's fault, but she knew good and well she had no one to blame but herself.

Kiera glanced at the _tidy _house, and grabbed some OJ that _wasn't _out of date from the _full _ couldn't leave now that she had things going so good. Could she? No, that's right, she couldn't, case closed, end of story, goodbye.

"Oh. ...Sorry. Well, anyway, could you go get me some –"

"Beat ya to it," Kiera said triumphantly as she left the kitchen with a Pop-Tart and her orange juice, summoning some beer into her mom's hand. _Finally, it lands where it's meant to!_

Mom's eyes widened, and she giggled as she popped the cap off her beloved beer bottle. "I still dunno how you do it."

"Magic, momma. Magic."

Kiera grinned and shook her head as she went up the stairs. She showered, dried her hair, and slipped into a baggy t-shirt. She opened the window to her right, not bothering with the one on her left as she plopped into her bed. She closed her eyes, but didn't immediately fall asleep like she had hoped.

Instead, she found herself thinking about Sora and the others. She...HAD promised she'd visit. But...it was so far away. She wasn't even sure she could teleport that far, for crying out loud! And besides...the more time she spent with them – with him –, the less she'd want to leave.

_I have a job...I'm on top of school again...Morgan's my best friend still...Momma's a little better...I can't leave. Not now. And that's that. _

No sooner had Kiera nodded decisively to herself when there was a giant _**THUD**_ against her window, followed by a rather familiar groan.

Her face fell into a rather miserable-looking expression, and she squeezed her eyes shut tighter in denial. "...Oh God. No. No. NONONONO –"

"KIERA, OPEN THE WINDOW, IT'S POURING OUT HERE!" Sora hissed-slash-shouted over the wind and rain. Kiera's eyes snapped open, and she poked her head over the side of her bed to peer at her window as one last _desperate _attempt to convince herself she'd imagined it.

There he was, standing on the roof and rubbing his face woefully as water dripped off him. Goofy and Donald were with him, and they brightened once they saw her. "KIERA!" they greeted.

Sora continued to rub his face, almost as if it were a way to avoid eye contact.

Kiera just sighed and opened her window, moving out of the way just in time as they dove inside, bringing wind, rain, and a couple of leaves from the tree near the roof inside with them.

"...Hiya, guys."


	2. Tall Shoes, Longer Hair, & Awkwardness!

**Back again! Whew, so many alerts, faves, and REVIEWS for just one chapp? One that was posted only about 4 days ago, no less. Thanks so much guys, I really appreciate it. I especially appreciate the new reviewers - 'bout time you slackers posted some feedback :D**

**This chapp's a bit short, mainly because I know the chapps might get really long once we visit some worlds, so I might as well give your eyes a break or two...or eight...between all that. xD**

**Oh, and by the way, SummoningShadows18: POST SOME. I'll be the first to read them if you'll just lemme know :) And I'll even...though it kills me...give you a cookie. I love cookies. SPEAKING of cookies, thanks for the cookie ComfortablyConfused. I LOVE COOKIES.**

**(Noms on cookie) OMNOMNOMNOM...Anyway. Sorry for giving ya'll the creeps from that Spider-In-Ear Incident. Oddly enough, I didn't start feeling all paranoid spider-wise until I read those reviews 0_0''**

**(Sighs) I'm too weird for my own good. I swear. Well, read, review, ENJOOOOY! **

* * *

Goofy and Donald perked up even more, running towards her. "KIERAAA!"

"NOOOO!"

_**THUD.**_

"...Good to see ya'll, too," she managed to get out with a groan, now soaked from head to toe and being pressed into the even MORE soaked carpet.

"We missed you so much!" Goofy informed her.

"Right back atchya, can ya'll...get off me now?" she asked weakly, trying not to breathe in the horrible smell of seventeen-year-old carpet.

They bounded up, pulling her up with them. Kiera stumbled a little, feeling lightheaded. "Whew...All I smell is carpet..." she muttered thoughtfully, wrinkling her nose and making several odd faces.

Sora sweatdropped as she made one face that made her sneeze and hiccup at the same time, and he shook his head. "...Nope, you haven't changed."

She glanced at him, shrugging. "Why would I?"

"I dunno, two years've gone by, you coulda been totally different."

"Not quite two years yet, THANKS very much," she corrected importantly, crossing her arms. "So. ...Why're you all here?"

_Wow, I just said "you all" instead of "ya'll"...Weird._

Goofy and Donald exchanged a look before looking at Sora expectantly, making him sigh. "We need you."

Kiera smirked. "I know you do, that's been obvious since week one. But why're you here?"

His temple throbbed at that, but he kept going. "The King's got another quest for us. And he asked for you specifically to come with us."

"What? Why me?" she asked distractedly as she dove to shut the windows as the rain blew onto her school papers and whatever other crap was located on her desk.

"Apparently there're other Gatekeepers out there. Y'know, people like you."

"People like me. ...What am I, an alien race?" she muttered with a temple throb. Sora scoffed at that one. "Is that a trick question, Kiera?"

Her temple throbbed even more, her right eye starting to twitch. "Why you _little_ –"

"ANYWAY, if you two can stop the banter for a second, we need to get goin'!" Donald interrupted, ruffling his feathers for emphasis.

Kiera gaped at them. "Leave? Now? JUST LIKE THAT?"

"You did it last time. _Twice_," Sora pointed out.

"Yeah, but the first time – the time that started all this – _wasn't_ on purpose!" she protested.

"What does that matter?"

"Well, I, um...It just...IT JUST DOES." She looked at them before sighing and shaking her head. "You guys, I can't just LEAVE...It took me almost two years to get things this good, and if I leave, I might as well have done squat..."

"But Kiera, The King needs us!"

"Yeah, Goofy's right! The worlds do, too!" Donald added.

She shook her head again. "I'm sorry, I really am, but..." She trailed off as Sora moved a little closer before pointing outside. "The Heartless are back. Kiera, if you stay here and don't help us, they'll come _here_ again, too. And I doubt you can take care of your mom if that happens. C'mon, just don't let her grab onto your leg and cry a river this time and you should be fine!"

"Now that's not fair. You know I woulda stayed whether she'd done that or not."

"Not fair? You left us all hanging for about two years, THAT'S not fair."

They tried to stare each other down, but eventually, an extra loud rumble of thunder interrupted them, making them both jump. Kiera glanced to her right and sweatdropped; Goofy and Donald were on their knees pouting at her. "Pleeeeeaase?" they begged.

_Dammit._

"...Fine. Fine. FINE," she relented with a heavy sigh, already holding out her arms as they glomped her. "YES!"

They quickly let go of her this time, running for her bedroom door. "To the Gummi Ship, then!" Kiera spastically shushed them. "SHHHH! ...My momma already thinks I'm leaving tomorrow, anyway – which I guess is technically today. Be _verrrryyy_ quiet and wait outside or something, I just have _one_ tiny thing to do, okay?"

They all nodded before creeping out the door and down the stairs as she rifled through her papers for her letter. She had wrote it a long time ago, around the time she had first gotten back home. When she had considered visiting Destiny Islands – you know, like she had promised.

She had also been determined to write as eloquently as Kairi. Thus, her farewell letter was born.

" **Momma – **

**Please, please forgive me, but I'm not sure I'll be home again. And...y'know, maybe someday you'll look up and, barely conscious, you'll say to no one: "Isn't something missing?" You won't cry for my absence any time soon, I know – You forgot me long ago. But I still can't believe that, not completely. I mean...Am I _really_ that unimportant...? Am I _that_ insignificant...? Isn't something missing? Isn't someone missing me? Well, someone will be missing _you_, believe it or not. Oh, and I guess I should tell you that I found Dad. It's probably best you'll never see him again. ...At least, you better not. I know the truth. I know neither of you ever really wanted me once I was here. But I have to hand it to you, you did a flawless job of pretending you did. I believed it for fifteen years. Remember that I love you. Please don't throw away my things again – I _will_ be summoning them from time to time. Summoning. It's that trick that gets me everything I want. Except, of course, love. You do remember what _love_ is, don't you? **

**Goodbye, Momma.**

**Kiera **"

She nodded to herself after folding it up, going downstairs and plopping it on top of Grace's current beer can.

She, of course, was fast asleep on the couch. Roseanne was on. Kiera still had a blush creep up her neck and cheeks whenever it happened like that – when the scenario was exactly the same. Roseanne, Momma presumably asleep, laugh track.

She shook herself quickly before summoning a literal _mountain_ of beer to the left of the fridge. She then summoned an even bigger mountain of cash and change, and that ended up to the right of the couch.

Kiera nodded. "That should last her for a good while."

And after summoning an umbrella, she stepped outside to make sure the idiots hadn't done anything...well, idiotic.

She sweatdropped at the sight of all three clinging to her mailbox for dear life. "THE HELL'RE YOU DOING?" she shouted over all the noise from the raging storm.

"WIND! STRONG! BLEW US OVER!" Sora shouted back.

She rolled her eyes, teleporting to them. They clung to HER for dear life, making her sigh exasperatedly as she teleported them all to the Gummi Ship.

* * *

"Honestly, how did ya'll _survive_ without me all this time?" she wondered as Donald and Goofy let go of her. "Not well," Sora replied, his face still buried against her neck. She felt the blush surge back up to her face, which in turn made her temple throb. "OFF ME!" she commanded, making him fly into the furthest wall.

"...Forgot your necklace, I see," he managed to get out with a groan, his face now buried into the wall instead.

She smiled. "Nope. I just wanted to hurt you a little."

"A _little_?" he wondered, sliding down to the ground with another groan. Donald and Goofy tried to hold in their laughter for Sora's sake, retreating to navigate the ship.

Kiera yawned and stretched. "Ugh, I'm exhausted. I had just gotten back from work when ya'll showed up, so if you excuse me, _I'm_ gonna go enter a goddamn _coma_."

She blinked after noticing he was blushing a little. "You wanna put on some pants first?" he asked simply.

For a split second, she considered wishing for the floor to swallow her up right then and there, but then she realized she WAS at least wearing underwear, so it was no big deal. And obviously what he saw was good enough to make him blush, so maybe that was actually a _plus_.

"Nah, I think I'm _just fine _without 'em," she said simply, walking only a few feet to the right so that she could get something to eat. Damn was she hungry.

Sora rolled over before standing up, glancing at her every five seconds. He could've commented on her newfound curves, or how she was a shade or two tanner, or the fact that her hair was even more red than before, or the fact that she looked all-around...shall we say... "grown-up" in general.

But all he said was, "Your, um...Your hair got longer."

_I'm such an idiot sometimes._

Kiera glanced at him as she ate some yogurt, sweatdropping. She had felt him staring at her for a good minute and a half, and THAT'S the best he could come up with?

_Guess I should say something in response to that..._

She could've commented right back at him about his hair seeming spikier, or him somehow managing to look even more fit than before, or the fact that his eyes were brighter than she remembered. Or even that he was about as tan as her, maybe tanner, or that he was all-in-all even harder to look away from – for multiple reasons.

But before she could say any of that, she heard herself saying, "And your, um...Your shoes...Make you look a bit taller..."

_I don't think it's his shoes...You're a frigging moron_, she thought miserably, wanting to facepalm herself.

"...I'm just gonna go sleep now," she muttered, making her yogurt disappear. Once she turned the corner, she practically ran for the cots, diving into what had been distinguished long ago as HER cot.

She closed her eyes, deeply breathing in that familiar cottony smell. "I can't believe I'm back on this old flying ship again."

_**

* * *

**_

_**LATER****...**_

Sora looked out the window at Destiny Islands before sighing and turning to look at Donald and Goofy. "...Who's gonna be the one to wake it up?"

"It?"

"Yeah, Kiera," he replied with a shrug. They nodded. "Ahhh, right..."

"Rock paper scissors?" Donald suggested. Sora nodded. "Alright, but _no _cheating this time!"

"Of course not!"

"Rock..."

"Paper..."

"SCISSORS!" Goofy declared, and they all brandished their signals of choice. Goofy and Sora had scissors, and Donald had paper. "YES!" Donald quacked happily, jumping down the ship's exit before anyone could guilt trip him into waking up Kiera.

Goofy and Sora exchanged a look. "Rock, paper –"

"SCISSORS!"

Sora had a rock. Goofy had paper. "Looks like you're the one doin' the wakin'," Goofy said cheerfully before tipping his hat in a "Good Luck" kind of way and jumping down the exit like Donald had.

"Goofy, wait, can't you – ...aw, dammit," he muttered, trudging to the cot room. "In what universe does paper beat rock anyways?"

* * *

Once he entered the room, he was immediately greeted by the sight of Kiera with her back to him, in her bra and underwear, bending slightly at the waist to inspect something.

"U-Umm..."

She jumped about a foot into the air before screeching "SIIIIIT!"

_**THUD.**_

"...Nothing ever changes with you, does it?" he wondered with a groan, rubbing his ass as he felt her hold on him lift; the initial scare was out of her system.

Kiera glared at him. "No, it doesn't. But _you're _more perverted than I remember you being."

"I came in here to wake you _up_, thanks very much!" he said defensively, crossing his arms in defiance. She rolled her eyes. "Right. That's your story, and you're sticking to it."

"Well, now that I'm in here, what the hell're you doing practically naked and randomly standing here?" he asked, moving further into the room to see what she had been bent over.

She flushed a little, making him smirk. "I-I'm not _practically naked_, I'm just...not...so clothed as usual."

"...Uh-huh."

"Well, ANYWAY, I was just deciding which clothes to wear." She pointed to some random shirt, then the top half of her old outfit on their last quest. "Should I just put on normal clothes, or the clothes I wore last time around?"

Sora sweatdropped. "_Please _just put on a shirt."

Kiera smirked. "What, have you got a bad case of Museum Syndrome?"

"Museum Syndrome?" he repeated.

"Yeah. You know, you wanna _look _but can't _touch_, so you'd rather not be forced to look at _all_," she said matter-of-factly, grinning even bigger when his temple throbbed.

"That's not true!"

"Uh-huh. Well, anyway, I'm gonna go with one of my normal ones. Stupid boobs, I probably outgrew the _other _one after all this time," she muttered more to herself, making him flush and avoid looking any further south than the top of her head.

"I-I'm just gonna –"

"Go, Sora, before you choke on your drool."

"I'M NOT DROOLING!"

"Right. Bye now."

"Oh, bye."

As soon as he turned the corner, he pretended Kiera was in front of him. He promptly strangled Imaginary Kiera to death before sighing and jumping down the exit hatch. "This quest is gonna be even more nerve-wracking than the last...She's gonna be the death of me, I swear on it."


	3. Have A Happy Period, Sora!

**I...am SO SORRY for taking so long!**

**I've been sick, I went on a choir trip, I have a knee that's apparently being pushed too far to the left and I've been having to deal with that, ANNNND I happen to live in Memphis, so I've been having to deal with the flood as well.**

**...Before it's even brought up, YES, it is more than coincidence that Kiera's from Memphis too. I only did that because I like to set things in places I can easily describe, I thought the idea of her being from a crime-filled city would be kinda funny and explanatory when it comes to how she deals with Sora and chooses her weapons, AAANNND I also never actually intended to type out this story. It was originally just sitting in my notebook up to the part where they're at the Coliseum.**

**But that's all another story for another time.**

**For now, I just wanna get this up for you poor starved readers. Before my eyelids close, which they're kind of already doing. **

**Read, review, ENJOY, I AM SO SORRY I HAVE YET TO DO THE REST OF THAT AUTHOR'S NOTE FROM SO MANY CHAPTERS AGO FROM THE FIRST STORY, I WILL EVENTUALLY GET TO THAT! **

**...And thank you for all the gifts and presents, they're much appreciated, and thank you to the new reviewers out there. Keep on reviewing, I usually treat readers and reviewers better than this, I promise. :P**

* * *

Kiera jumped down the hatch and landed on sand. The sun almost immediately tried to blind her, and she bent her head down with a hiss.

"I'm so nocturnal...stupid graveyard shifts."

She took off her shoes to make it look like she had a good reason for ducking her head like a vampire, and wiggled her toes in the sand for a few seconds before bounding over to the others – they were waiting a little ways off in front of an expansive mansion.

"What the hell is _that_?" Kiera wondered.

"Kairi's house. Haven't you been here before?"

Her temple throbbed. "I've only been two places here; the hospital and the island _you_ begged me to go to."

Sora nodded thoughtfully, and she wanted to slap the innocent grin off his face. "Ohhhh yeaaah, that's right! How could I forget?"

"My guess would be that Kairi kept you plenty occupied all this time, am I right?"

"Maybe she did, but that doesn't really concern you, _does_ it?"

"I'm your Gatekeeper, _everything_ you do concerns me. As well as every ONE you do."

"I haven't DONE anyone, jeez! ...Besides, for someone so worried about me, you sure did have a funny way of showing it."

"You guys!" Donald interrupted, making them jump and look at him innocently. He huffed and shook his head with a quack. "You're even worse than you were before!"

Goofy leaned over towards him, stage-whispering, "Maybe they're close to their periods."

"WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING?" they shouted defensively. Before Donald or Goofy could reply, Kairi bounded up, Riku close behind.

"I had a feeling it was you. The yelling tipped me off," she informed them matter-of-factly.

"Your clever skills of deduction amaze me. That's worthy of a cookie," Kiera deadpanned, obviously pissed at everything in general.

Kairi pursed her lips and tried to remain neutral, Sora gave her a sharp glare, and Kiera blew the bangs out of her eyes innocently.

Riku just nodded. "Kiera's back."

"Finally, someone _happy_ to see me!" Kiera said cheerfully before adding quickly, "Besides you two," as Goofy and Donald opened their mouths to shout in protest.

"Speaking of people happy to see you, the King's waiting inside," Kairi announced as a way of breaking the ice, all sunshine and rainbows.

"Awesome, let's go inside then!" Kiera said in an equally-happy tone. Sora rolled his eyes as she walked behind Kairi so she wouldn't see her jab a finger down her throat with a "BLEGGH" noise.

"You're so dramatic."

"You're so annoying."

"You're so bitchy."

"You're so demanding. We can't all be sunshine and fricking rainbows while functioning on four hours of sleep!"

"Four hours of sleep, that's all you got? ...You're so stupid."

"Now, isn't that a rather subjective criterion?" she asked matter-of-factly, thoroughly enjoying the look of utter confusion on his face as she strode ahead of him and went through the door Kairi opened.

"Thank you," she said simply as Kairi held it open. Sora looked to Riku. "...What the hell does 'a rather subjective criterion' mean?"

"It means you just got owned by a nerd," Riku replied with a smirk.

* * *

Once inside, Kiera made a point of not looking at how fancy and beautiful the whole place looked, but made a beeline for King Mickey, who was waiting in the center of the main room. "Mickey!" she cheered, resisting the urge to glomp him at the very last moment.

"Your Majesty!" Donald, Goofy, and Sora greeted.

Mickey grinned at them all. "Good to see you were successful; welcome back, Kiera!"

"Good to _be_ back," she replied.

He looked at them all. "Welp, I suppose you want to hear just exactly what you're doing here, together again. ...You're all familiar with Sora and Kiera's bond. You all know she's a Gatekeeper. And we were all satisfied with that. But after that final battle, I began to wonder about Sora's performance.

"None of us can deny how much stronger you've gotten, Sora, that's obvious. But if you were watching battles where Kiera was present or absent, you would notice a difference. Same with Kiera's battles in which _Sora's_ there or not there. When the two are together, they look...stronger. Better. Faster. More focused. It's even in their expressions, they look more serious when they have the other person there with them to protect!

"I talked with the great Yen Sid and Merlin about this, and we soon reached one single conclusion. Gatekeepers, among their other duties, are performance enhancers. When us Keyblade wielders are with our Gatekeepers, our skills are better beyond belief! ...And we'll need them. The Heartless have returned. The worlds need your help yet again, and I know you all felt it. It's a growing darkness. What exactly it is, I'm not sure, but I intend to find out. In the meantime, you all have a very important mission."

Kiera nodded as he paused, then blinked. "Whoa, wait. We..._all_? As in...not just us four, but...Kairi and Riku, too?"

"Yep! ...That's not gonna be a problem, _is it_?" Mickey prompted, the answer quite obvious in his tone.

"...Nooo, of course not. It'll be _fun_," she said cheerfully through gritted teeth, making Sora bite his lip to keep from laughing at her. The last thing he wanted was a "SIT!".

"Good! Well, anyway, you have a very important mission. It's up to you to find your Gatekeepers, as well as save the worlds like the two quests before. If all goes as hoped, we'll be able to meet the biggest threat head-on, Gatekeepers by your sides, and defeat it. Together this time. If we all use our maximum power, an amount only your Gatekeeper could help provide, there's no way we could lose!" King Mickey explained enthusiastically.

Kiera clapped her hands together with finality. "Great! Awesome! ...And how're we gonna know who these Gatekeepers are?"

"_You_, of course!"

"Oh, right! Hahahaha – ...wait, _what_?" she asked with wide circles for eyes, making the others sweatdrop.

The King chuckled. "Don't worry, you'll know one when you see one. Trust me. Now, get goin'! The worlds can't wait forever!"

* * *

Once on the Gummi Ship, Kiera watched with sweatdrops as Kairi looked around with utter amazement, and after a few gasps about how "huge" and "amazing" it looked, Sora went on and showed her around.

"...Well. He's a lot more cooperative with showing _her_ around, huh?" she asked Goofy matter-of-factly.

"Aw, Kiera, don't be jealous. He thought you were crazy then!"

She nodded. "Yeah. Now he _knows_ I am. It's quite refreshing when someone knows you for what you are."

Riku tossed her a bundle, making her jump before spastically catching it. "The King asked me to give you this. Said you grow up too fast."

She gave him a weird look before opening it; there were clothes inside. "Well, this solves my outfit dilemma...But it's kinda creepy that he knows my sizes," she muttered to herself, going into the cot room to change.

Kiera slid out of her regular clothes, jumping into her new shorts; they were surprisingly shorter than her last pair, at least five inches above the knee, with what looked like suspenders that hung like belts on the outside of both thighs. The shorts themselves were black like her last pair, and the suspenders were a bright green with a crown pattern.

"Yep, a guy _definitely_ picked these out. ...Ah, so Sora's crown's back into play," she commented thoughtfully. She had picked up on the fact that her outfit and changed appearances in each world on her last quest had had at least one item or pattern on it that involved Sora's crown symbol on his necklace.

Her shirt was the same as before, only it was just the corseted-looking part and the black undershirt. The blue undershirt was instead a sheer covering that was sewn onto her black undershirt. The undershirt that had been almost like a tee and covered her upper arms was gone, leaving her feeling a little exposed and oddly mature.

Then she realized she'd have to be in Constant Sports Bra Mode yet again, and she groaned as she slipped her shirts right back off.

She summoned a sports bra after taking off her regular bra (navy blue with yellow lace – she'd gotten a bit girlier over the past couple years), and was in the process of clasping it together when Sora opened the door.

"And this is where we – HOLY CRAP, KIERA, COVER IT UP!" he shouted, spastically slamming the door shut.

Kiera's temple was throbbing majorly as she continued to fix the clasps, and it was still throbbing once she got fully dressed and stomped out of the room. _AGAIN, SORA? ...This better not become a regular occurence, or so help me, I'll...UGH._

Riku was leaning against the corner of the wall laughing, Kairi was looking flustered and a bit angry, and Sora was a mixture of mortified, annoyed, and...kind of smug. Almost proud of himself.

Or maybe that was her imagination.

She huffed. "...I dunno who to be more mad at. _You_ for barging in with your girlfriend without KNOCKING first, or _me_ for putting a bra on while facing the door."

Sora turned even redder. "Please don't remind me," he said miserably. "I'd rather just pretend I didn't see anything."

"I'm not sure if that amuses me or makes me even _more_ pissed," Kiera commented to Kairi, the only fellow girl in the room. And with that said, she summoned a Pop-Tart and shook her head. "We need some goddamn locks on these doors."

Riku finally got his comment in between laughs. "Twenty-four hours back together, and you've practically gotten to second base already, Sora!"

"Not now, Riku. Seriously. No."

"...Probably _further_ in your head –"

"PLEASE SHUT UP."

Kairi frowned before leaning towards Riku as the other two started shouting. "...Sora hasn't been that aggressive before."

"He hasn't been that aggressive towards US before," he corrected.

Donald shook his head at them. "What're ya whispering for? They're absorbed with each other right now, you could shout at them and they wouldn't hear you."

"Trust us, we've tried!" Goofy added with a chuckle.

Kairi sweatdropped, and Riku patted her shoulder. "You'll get used to it."

* * *

Kiera slept a good seven hours straight while the others went to the King's palace so they could get extra fuel, gear, etcetera. In case the ship broke down like LAST time.

When she woke up, she felt like she had been asleep for years. It'd been so long since she had the right amount of sleep. For the past couple years, without the same Sleep-Fight-Argue-With-Sora-Sleep pattern (with occasional dancing or flirting or Kairi complaints thrown in here and there), she'd been getting either way too little or way too much sleep.

But this time she got her designated seven hours. No dreams, no interruptions, just sleep. And she actually felt rested!

...Until she got up.

"Uggghhh," she groaned as she heard her spine pop all the way up. After taking a step, her left ankle popped as well. "Why's my body acting so old?" she wondered.

With a shrug, Kiera poked her head out the door. "Hello?" she called out.

No answer.

Just to be sure it was empty, she shouted at the top of her lungs, "KAIRI'S GOT SMALL BOOBS, SORA'S AN IDIOT, AND RIKU NEEDS TO GET OVER HIMSELF!".

Satisfied, she nodded happily and closed her eyes. _Wherever Sora is! _She felt that familiar all-over tingle as she teleported to Sora's side inside Merlin's house. This made everyone jump but Sora.

"KIERA, DON'T DO THAT!" they all shouted in surprise. Sora just blinked, and she raised her eyebrows at him. "_You_ don't look so surprised."

He shrugged. "I felt you coming."

Kiera just barely resisted the urge to burst into uncontrollable laughter and shout out "That's what she said!". Everyone seemed to think she was somewhat more mature than she was a couple years ago, and she intended to try and keep it that way for as long as possible.

Yuffie punched her in the shoulder cheerfully. "Good to have ya back! You've been gone for _forever_!"

"Tell me about it!" her and Sora said in unison; she sounded cheerful, while he sounded annoyed.

She muttered "Sit" so quietly that everyone thought Sora had tripped on something when he suddenly hit the ground ass-first.

_**THUD.**_

Goofy looked at Kiera suspiciously, but she just smiled innocently. Leon cocked an eyebrow. "You've gotten clumsier since last time, Sora."

Sora's temple throbbed, knowing using Kiera as a defense was hopeless and just as embarrassing. "...Yeah."

Kiera beamed at them. "So. What'd I miss?"

"Nothing at all, my dear, you merely skipped the formalities," Merlin replied cheerfully. Kiera beamed. "Good, I _hate_ being formal!"

Sora sweatdropped. "How can you hate being formal? You've never BEEN formal."

"Was I talking to you? I didn't think so. This is an A-B conversation, SEE your way out of it."

His temple throbbed, but he shut up anyway. Kairi and Riku sweatdropped, while the others just sighed and shook their heads. Kiera smiled, innocent as usual. "So, ya'll wouldn't happen to know where I could find these fellow Gatekeepers I'm supposed to be finding, do you?"

Leon chuckled. "Even if we'd seen them, we wouldn't know it. The only one who'd know they were Gatekeepers is you."

"Why does everyone keep _saying_ that?"

"Because it's the truth, m'dear," Merlin interrupted. "Just like you and Sora, you and the other unknown Gatekeepers share a bond. It's not even near as strong as the one between you too, but a bond nonetheless. At the very least, you should be able to feel some kind of reaction around the Gatekeeper-in-question. I know you're tired of hearing 'You'll know them when you see them,' but we really mean just that!"

They sweatdropped as she huffed and pouted, crossing her arms. "Fiiiine, if you say so..."

"Why don't we go look around Hollow Bastion for them?" Kairi asked, speaking up suddenly. They exchanged looks before looking at Kiera, whose pout increased as she shrugged and followed Kairi. "Did I ever mention how much I hate you?" she asked Sora, who rolled his eyes.

"Because it's _my_ fault you were born to make my life miserable."

"Exactly."

"Right."

* * *

_**FIVE****HOURS LATER...**_

"You're SURE he isn't a Gatekeeper?"

"YES, Sora, jeez! You're scaring him, put him down NOW!"

Sora sighed miserably and dropped the dog gently, making everyone besides Kiera sweatdrop even more. Yuffie and Riku drooped. "This is ridiculous...even _Sora's_ losing it!"

"We haveta keep looking! There's still some places we haven't checked!" Kairi insisted, running off around another corner. They all reluctantly followed, Kiera and Sora bringing up the rear. Her temple throbbed as she turned to look at him sideways. "Take a picture, it lasts longer."

"You're quieter than I remember. It's weird," he commented simply as if that justified his staring. Then he narrowed his eyes suspiciously, studying her. "Are you _plotting_ something?"

"...NO."

"That's even weirder!"

She sighed exasperatedly, lowering her voice. "If you _must_ know, I'm just in a bad mood because my period's coming soon. There. Happy?"

He groaned. "Agh, it feels like the last one just stopped yesterday!"

A huge grin slowly spread across her face. "...You still have the period symptoms? Even though I wasn't around?"

"Hmm, lemme put it this way." He paused to lean closer to her, grinning. "Did you still think about me even though I wasn't around?"

She felt a blush involuntarily creep up her cheeks, and his grin grew into a rather smug smirk. "I'll assume that's a yes. That'd have to mean we still have a bond thing, right? So ERGO, I still get your, uh...period symptoms," he said somewhat uncomfortably.

That still didn't wipe the smirk off his face, though.

Kiera arched an eyebrow. "Who taught you the word 'ergo' while I was gone?"

His temple throbbed. "What, is it hard to believe I'd know that word myself?"

She didn't answer, just stared at him, and he finally sighed. "I heard Kairi mention it, so I looked it up in the dictionary."

"Because if _Kairi_ says something, it's worth knowing what the hell _she's_ talking about," she muttered.

"What?"

"N-Nothing!" she said quickly with a cheerful laugh. They finally caught up with the rest of the gang, and Kairi was currently pleading her case that if they left any part of Hollow Bastion/Radiant Garden unchecked, they'd miss the Gatekeeper. Or Gatekeepers.

Finally, Kiera sighed exasperatedly. "Look, if we explored every inch of every city in EVERY WORLD we visit, we'd be on a quest for years!"

"It's a risk we have to take if it means completing our quest. I'd rather do it right the FIRST time," Kairi replied determinedly. Obviously she had a bad case of Quest Fever, which Kiera couldn't entirely hold against her. She caught a milder version of that fever years ago.

"Merlin said I'd know a Gatekeeper when I saw one, right?"

"...Yeah..."

"So don't you think if there was a person here who was a Gatekeeper, I would've known?"

"Well, we –"

"Tell you what, Kairi. How about we explore _one_ more street, and then we pay a visit to Tron since I miss the guy so much. ...And THEN...If we don't find the Gatekeeper before then, I owe you a slice of cake. Deal?"

Kairi looked at everyone, seeming to just now realize how exhausted everyone was, herself included, and nodded cheerfully. "Guess you're right!"

Everyone sighed in relief, and Yuffie grinned. "Seeing as I'm probably the only one here not hopelessly lost already, follow me!"

As they all did so, and Goofy and Donald took turns excitedly telling Kairi about the Tron Universe, Kiera couldn't help but notice one of the local girls eyeing Sora.

Somehow Sora noticed the merchant girl, despite his usual obliviousity, and Kiera's temple throbbed as he eyed her right back.

He even winked!

So of course she was obligated to summon a box of tampons and tug on his sleeve. "Hey, I tried these new tampons while I was gone. They're all bright, and they'll REALLY HELP YOUR PERIOD! I know you have a HEAVY FLOW and all!" she practically shouted.

Sora turned bright red, and the girl's eyes darted back to the merchandise she was selling faster than you could say "Holy crap, what a masculine girl!".

Kiera resisted the urge to laugh as he slowly turned to look at her, temple throbbing massively.

"...Just lookin' after ya, Sora. I'm your Gatekeeper, it's what I do."

"You don't have to protect me from someone like HER!"

"Her? Oh, NOOO, you think I did that because of HER! Nah, I just thought I'd help you have a happy period," she said cheerfully, snickering to herself after quoting those tampon commercials.

"Kiera, I don't even BLEED! THERE'S NOTHING FOR ME TO BLEED OUT OF!"

"You COULD bleed out of your penis, technically speaking."

"D-Don't talk about my penis!"

"Hahahaha, you said penis!"

"What are you, five?"

"Seventeen, actually."

Steam was practically coming out of Sora's ears, and Riku facepalmed as they continued their stupid bickering, having been in earshot the whole time.

"...This is gonna be the longest quest of our lives."


	4. This IS Still the TRON World, Right?

**GAH! I'M FINALLY BACK!**

**I hate it when I take forever to update. It makes me sad. D:**

**Sorry, the flood was being mean to me. MEMPHIS STINKS TO HIGH HEAVEN. LITERALLY. MAKE IT STOP! ...Oh! I saw a tornado touch down about 3 weeks or so ago. It touched down, um...less than a block away from my house. Two streets south of me, to be exact. See, the town near Memphis I live in most of the time is on that borderline between Shelby County and I think Fayette County. For those who don't know, Shelby is basically the Memphis area and Fayette is that area in Mississippi that gets all the storms. So my town gets both. **

**...There were no cows in this big fat tornado. I was very disappointed. ANYWAY, luckily only one house and I think a business got destroyed, so we got lucky. VERY lucky considering if it had stayed on the ground long enough, it was supposed to be an F-5. :O**

**...Aaand I also had a bit of writer's block for this story and my Bleach story. I was sad. BUT NOW I DON'T! And I'm working on the next chapp for this while you're reading this rambling author's note! **

**I probably should've written more for being gone for so long, but...well, I like cliffhangers. ;D**

**ANYWAY.**

**Keariel, thanks for the heat compresses for Kiera and Sora's unfortunate times of the month. They'll appreciate them, I'm sure. xD And Morcelink, thanks for the 12-month supply of pain-and-exhaustion-reducing cookies! And Fanofawesomestories, for now on I'm calling you Fan. Okay? :D And thanks for Kiera's video tutorial: "101 Ways To Train Your Keybearer".**

**ILooveAnimeBishiesx3, thanks for your gifts too! They are:**

**"For Sora - a big hug from me, a giant cookie, a Playstation 2 and Kingdom Hearts 2 ;D Just so you can play as yourself! hahahah. :)**

For Kiera - tampons, PMS pills (Thank god they have those!), extra clothes and a giant chocolate bar. I love eating chocolate on my period, and I hope you do to :D"

**And thanks EVERYONE for your compliments on the story, well-wishes as far as Memphis is concerned, and for still reading this sequel even though I feel like a total slacker since it doesn't even have 5 chapps and I'm already getting lazy. I SHALL DO BETTER, I SWEAR BY IT!**

**...And next chapp, Kiera and Sora might come back into the author's notes. Just 'cause I can do that with my Powers Of Teh Authoress. :D**

**So read.**

**Review.**

**And ENJOOOOY! :D**

* * *

The two eventually ceased their argument in favor of the hopes of seeing Tron, and were somewhat cheerful as they followed Yuffie.

Faaaar away from each other.

Of course, this didn't stop them from looking at the other person when they weren't looking. Or at least, didn't _look_ like they were looking.

Yuffie ran up to Leon and started chatting up a storm almost before they even reached the entrance to the computer lab hidden by Ansem's study.

_Ansem..._

Kiera shook herself as a flashback of those final battles – and her dad – flashed through her head, catching up with Donald and Goofy.

"...And now that Sark and the MCP are gone, it should be pretty neat to see what Tron's done with the place," Sora concluded, having been explaining Tron to Kairi and Riku just like Donald and Goofy had.

Kiera made a face. "I hope he didn't do anything stupid."

"Kiera, it's TRON we're talking about. He's the smartest person I know!"

"Besides me?"

"...Yeah. Sure, besides you."

Her temple throbbed at how he didn't even bother making that sound convincing, and she sighed woefully. "Ahhh man, I miss the good old days when you were terrified of pissing me off."

"Why was he so terrified?" Kairi wondered.

Riku and Goofy looked at her like she was clinically insane, while Kiera just smiled slyly. "Oh, because he knew pissing me off would lead to me doing this: SIIIIIIIIIT!"

_**THUUUUUUUUUD.**_

"You know...being sat hurts worse than I remember," Sora said simply, his face buried into the ground.

Kiera giggled and let him get up, and Leon cleared his throat. "Hey. You two." They both looked over at him, and he pointed to a dusty computer. "If you can get it up and running, you'll be the first in about a year."

"What?"

"Yeah. Someone hacked the system when no one was here, and when we got back we couldn't access anything. Not even the public files."

"Hmmm..."

Kiera cleared her throat rather loudly, looking at Sora meaningfully. He rolled his eyes. "Go ahead, give it a shot."

"YES! Step aside, let your own personal Geek Squad take a look!" she said cheerfully, zooming over and summoning a wheelie-chair before plopping into it and popping her knuckles professionally.

Sora sweatdropped, shaking his head quickly. "Since when does she ever wait for my permission to _do_ something?"

"Maybe it was for dramatic effect or something," Kairi suggested as Kiera clacked away on the keyboard. "She's a pretty...'dramatic' person."

Riku chuckled. "That's one word for it."

"I can hear ya'll, you know," Kiera muttered distractedly as she waited for the screen to load. "Damn," she said after a few moments.

_Firewall._

"Think...think...thiiiiink," she said to herself as she tapped her fingernails on the arm of her chair.

"Does it need a password?" Sora asked suddenly from right behind her, making her jump so bad she flipped out of the chair. "GAH!"

Everyone watched with sweatdrops as she stood, temple throbbing, and glared wordlessly at Sora. After a grand total of six seconds, he gulped and quickly bent down to pick up the chair, pulling it out for her. "Thank you," she said in a dangerous tone, sitting down in the wheelie-chair. "And yes, it does."

"Does what?"

"Needs a password, stupid."

"How am I the stupid one? YOU'RE the one who just flipped out of a –"

"SIT."

_**THUD.**_

"Sometimes I wonder why he even talks," Riku commented thoughtfully. Leon and Kairi nodded, while Yuffie just leaned with her elbow on the desk, staring at the computer screen. "I wonder what's going on down there in Tron's world. Must be something big, for him to not try and communicate with us."

"Right...Hey, wait, that's it!" Sora said suddenly, making them all jump. This time, Kiera didn't flip out of her chair, and she sighed heavily. "_What's_ it, Sora?"

"That's the password!"

"What is? 'That'?"

"NO, us!"

"That makes no sense! A standard password's supposed to be at least five characters long, and that's only two!"

Sora facepalmed before pushing her chair over to the right so he could get to the keyboard. Kiera then zoomed into the wall while he typed meticulously. Kairi ran over as she crawled out from under the chair, but she waved her off. "Just...leave me here. The ground smells nice."

Riku sweatdropped, and Sora suddenly pumped his fist triumphantly. "Ah-HA! That was it! 'Sora, Kiera, Donald, Goofy'. WE were the password, just like I said!"

"Technically speaking, you said 'us'," Kiera grumbled, her face against the floor.

Sora glanced her way to argue about it, but then he sweatdropped. "What the hell? How'd you end up on the floor under the chair?"

"The chair had a temper tantrum. What do you THINK happened? You pushed me into the wall, jackass!" Kiera shouted.

"...The idea was for you to stop yourself with your feet if you didn't stop before hitting the wall," Sora commented simply.

"...My feet don't touch the damn ground, and you know it!"

"...Oh. Right. Sorry, I forgot how short you were," he said with a laugh. That earned another glare, and he sighed. "Please don't sit me."

"Sora, SI –" She cut herself off as the computer whirred to life, running over so that she'd get zapped as well. "YAY! We're about to get zapped in! Everyone crowd in like it's a picture."

Kairi, Riku, Donald, and Goofy all crowded around the two of them. Sora and Kiera exchanged a look and a sweatdrop as the other four posed goofily like it actually WAS a picture.

"I hope your face freezes that way."

"Kier-_aaa_," Sora said in that warning tone of his.

"Oh please, Sora, I wasn't directing it to _only_ Kairi! I just...happened to be looking that way, and, uhhh...OH LOOK, WE'RE BEING ZA –"

She didn't get to finish her sentence as she was zapped into the computer.

* * *

"Ugh, I forgot about that tugging feeling. It _sucks_," she commented as soon as she could talk, rubbing her stomach. Upon rubbing it, she realized there was a material there that most definitely was NOT like the last Tron outfit.

"Sora?" she wondered, looking around. They ended up bumping into each other, and her temple throbbed. "You coulda _said_ something!"

"YOU coulda said something!"

"I did, if you recall."

"Oh. Right. WHOA, WAIT. Kiera, how come _you_ got a new outfit?" he asked suddenly, making her jump.

"Because I'm specia – hey, you got one too," she noticed suddenly. She tried to keep the flush out of her cheeks, there was no headgear to hide it this time around.

Let's just say that his new outfit was rather form-fitting. It was a black suit that looked to be a one-piece, but she couldn't tell. And she was NOT going to risk him catching her staring to try and figure it out.

He was glowing with blue light from the pattern all over his outfit, and a couple random spikes in his hair had blue neon-looking strips mixed in them. Made her wonder what the hell SHE looked like. Kiera summoned a mirror, moving it every which way so she could see.

From what she could gather, hers was pretty damn form-fitting too. It was black like his, only hers was glowing a bright green. She had green strips mixed into her hair as well, on both spikes and pieces of her hair that waved.

When she looked up, Sora was the one flushing, and she grinned. "Guess my hair's not the only thing that grew, huh?"

"I-I-I wouldn't know," he said quickly, looking around as his flush turned into full-out bright blushing. "Where the hell's everyone else?"

She sweatdropped. "...I was talking about my HEIGHT, Sora. Just 'cause I'm still shorter than you doesn't mean I didn't grow any."

"...Right. That's what I was talking about, too. I wasn't, um...I wasn't talking about your che–...Is it hot in here?" he asked suddenly, making her bite her lip to keep from laughing.

"There you are!" Kairi said suddenly, running up to Sora. Kiera's temple throbbed as she wondered if Kairi had forgot to put on a bra. _Maybe she's just plain better-endowed in that department than I am._

Her outfit was glowing pink, and Riku's was glowing a greyish-black color. Kairi had white strips in her hair, and Riku's were black. Donald and Goofy's outfits weren't form-fitting like theirs; they looked more like their regular clothes turned into the same black color, both of them with blue strips.

"...Well. _This_ is different," Sora commented thoughtfully. That was when Kiera looked around, and she tugged on his arm. "You think THIS is different? Look in front of you."

They all looked, eyes widening. Kiera let out a whistle. "Goddamn. Two years, and all this happens."

* * *

On the ground, as far as the eye could see, were a ton of white dots. They looked like pressure sensors from that one scene in Charlie's Angels or something.

Up ahead was the city itself. That's right, it was now a city. There were tall towers all over, and everything was lit up with bright white light. It looked like a futuristic version of New York City, with thinner towers.

"Whoa..."

"Yeah," Kairi agreed.

Kiera looked at a treasure chest nearby, one of the ones that Sora always opened with his Keyblade. "I think these are the only things left here that I recognize!"

Sora tapped it open with his Keyblade, collecting a Mythril Gem. "...Well, Kiera?" Kairi asked suddenly, making Kiera turn to look at her.

"Hmm?"

"Where do we go from here?"

"_That_ way!" Kiera said almost immediately as if she knew what she was doing, pointing in a random direction.

They all nodded and followed her and Sora, with Donald and Riku bringing up the rear as Goofy praised Kairi on her "true adventurer spirit".

"So. Do you think Tron's dead?" Kiera asked in a voice so low that Sora almost didn't hear it. He looked at her funny. "Wh-What makes you think that?"

"Well, he hasn't talked to anyone in over a year. That's not like him, don't chya agree?"

"Well...Yeah, but...That doesn't mean he's dead. Maybe he's in the Pit Cell, like last time! There's probably just another enemy for us to fight, that's all," Sora said in a tone that made Kiera wonder who he was trying to convince more: her, or himself.

"Like there even IS a Pit Cell anymore."

"...There could be a _new_ one."

"Right, Sora. You're probably right."

"Are you being sarcastic?"

"Of course not."

"Right."

"GAH!" she suddenly exclaimed as Heartless appeared, three of them right in front of her face. Without even thinking about it, she summoned a fork and a pair of chopsticks, impaling all three in the eye in under five seconds.

The others sweatdropped as the Heartless vanished, and Kairi's brows furrowed. "What the hell was that?"

"Heartless. Duh."

"I kinda meant you."

"Me?"

"Yeah, did you just defeat Heartless with a fork and chopsticks?" Kairi asked, sweatdropping even more. Kiera grinned. "Sure did! I probably coulda just summoned my Keyblade, but random objects are a lot more fun. Besides, that was all reflex anyway."

Sora and Riku sweatdropped at her bragging. "Still using the Keyblade?"

"There aren't really any reasons to back where I'm from," Kiera replied to Riku, who nodded. Sora looked at her weird. "I thought you said Memphis had the highest number of crimes in your world?"

"Well, I dunno about the WORLD, but...as far as the United States is concerned, pretty much. I think we're ranked second or third right now. Why?" she asked before destroying another Heartless that popped up.

"Well, do you ever use it for self-defense?" he asked once the other Heartless were gone. At least THOSE still looked the same.

Kiera shook her head. "Nope. Usually I just summon a big gun, and I never even have to use it. It's pretty great," she said with a laugh, getting that far-off look on her face as she thought back on all the morons who had tried to mug her on the way to and from her house.

* * *

As they made their way towards the city, fighting Heartless here and there as usual, Kiera began to grow uneasy. "Sora...?"

"Yeah?"

"Why is it so _empty-looking_?" she wondered quietly as the others talked amongst themselves. Sora's brows furrowed as well. "...Do you think it might be since we're kind of out of the city's limits?"

"Yeah...Maybe...But why does no one _go_ outside the city limits? Is there something out here we should know about, do you think?" she wondered.

He looked at her funny. "I think that's the smartest, most logical thing I've ever heard you say when it comes to exploring."

She couldn't help but beam at that, but her face fell when they heard rather loud whirring behind them. "...I get the distinct feeling that it's not a _Heartless_ behind me," she informed him matter-of-factly.

Their faces fell even further when they heard the others make noises of struggle before hearing _**SHRRK**_ and _**CLINK**_ noises.

"Dammit," they both groaned as they turned around. Their eyes widened at the sight of their friends being forced onto platforms that apparently worked like Gorilla Glue in that it made them unable to move.

And standing before them, hands on his hips, was none other than...

Kiera's eyes narrowed. "Captain Asshole. We meet again."


	5. Avira and the Disc Arena

**OKAY, guys! I'm back! And I just wanna say first and foremost two things. One, I'm glad you didn't give up on me updating this story and that I got so many reviews off that one chapter. Seriously. I just...Yeah, I don't even. AND SECONDLY. As far as Tron goes, I'm not going completely by Tron: Legacy. Mainly because I'm still really pissed that Tron was in the background of the movie nearly the whole time, only got ONE FRICKING LINE, and then...apparently...DIED. I mean, COME ON! Ohhh, me and my dad had fits. Which, since he's a cop, was interesting to see. I guess even he has an Inner Nerd to unleash sometimes. Especially since we both saw the original Tron movie.**

**Am I the only one that thought despite it being "inferior" compared to what we have now, that technology was badass back then? I thought it looked cool. :D**

**ANYWAY. Now that we have that settled. I'm setting this in that time period before the second movie, where CLU (is it CLU or CLUE? Please tell me D: ) is just starting to gain complete control. Okay? OKAY! :D**

**Kiera: (Bursts through the door) I HEARD THERE WAS PRESENTS!**

**Sora: (Walks in leisurely) Presents?**

**Me: (Sweatdrop) Well...Hi, guys. Yeah, I think there's some presents. Hold on a sec... (rummages through giant bag, throwing out of it all kinds of random crap) No...No...DEFINITELY NOT...**

**Kiera: (Dodges frying pan, CDs, and a Jack Skellington plushie) Oooh, I want that! (Chases after plushie)**

**Sora: (Dodges a thong that nearly lands on his head) OHGOD, Mandy, you wear thongs?**

**Me: ...That's not mine. HOW THE HELL DID THAT GET IN THERE? (Looks around furiously) Has someone been HAVING SEX IN THIS GODDAMN BAG?**

**Kon: (Runs in) ...Oh. That's mi - I mean...My friend's...(Slowly picks it up, looks around suspiciously, then runs away)**

**Everyone: 0_0 (Shudders) Ewwww...**

**Me: 0_0' Anyway...AH-HA! HERE THEY ARE! **

**Sora and Kiera: YAY!**

**Me: OKAY! First up are gifts from HopeReincarnated:**

**"Sora: A guide to understanding girls, brownies, a portrait of Kiera that he can stare at longingly.**

Kiera: A wooden bat she can use to smack Sora with when he gets annoying, Pirates of the Caribbean 4 on blue-ray and the official 'Maniac torture kit' so she can use it on Sora!"

**So**

** "Also, I have a gift for sora and Kiera. For Kiera she gets a new Jack sparrow Pillow. Yes, a pillow shaped like him. And for sora... A video tutorial called "how not to make a woman who can control your every move angry" long title but i think sora will find use for it XD see ya next chapter!"**

**Sora: WHY DOES EVERYONE KEEP **

* * *

Captain Asshole narrowed his eyes, looking irritated. "Honestly, is there nothing else in your undoubtedly _limited_ vocabulary that you can call me, User?"

She scowled. "Actually, my vocabulary's very wide. And colorful. Allow me to demonstrate! Ahem: You're not even deemed worthy of being called an asshole, SIR! You filthy scum of the earth, release everybody RIGHT NOW you fucking –"

Sora clapped a hand over her mouth, laughing nervously as she flailed idiotically. "...Don't mind her. She's on the verge of PMSing."

"YOU'RE BOTH BASTARDS!" she shouted, but it came out muffled thanks to Sora's hand. Their friends were sweatdropping now, and Sark just sighed exasperatedly and rolled his eyes.

"I have a better idea. Join your friends, or my Heartless will assist you. And I assure you, you'll wish they hadn't. Which will it be?"

Sora and Kiera exchanged a look before sighing and hopping onto two empty platforms. They really couldn't afford fighting Heartless with just the two of them able to move. Almost immediately, she felt her body grow stiff, pressing against the back wall of the platform. "...Well...This _sucks_."

"Where are you taking us?" Kairi demanded harshly, making Kiera jump.

"Oh, hey Kairi."

Captain Asshole didn't answer, and Kiera summoned a large peashooter into her mouth with a giant spitball inside. She blew as hard as she could, and everyone sweatdropped as it hit Sark in the one area on the back of his head that his helmet left exposed.

"GAH! WHO DID THAT?" he demanded, flinging the abnormally-large spitball off his hair and whirling around to look at them after putting the machine they were traveling on on autopilot.

The other random people on platforms (Programs, she assumed) both around and below them gawked over/up at her as she scowled at him again. "My friend over there asked you a question."

His expression was one of pure disbelief, then rage. "Whyyy _you_!" he shouted, advancing at rapid speed.

Kiera thought up a dart with sleeping toxin on it – like you saw in those old movies about natives who shot those at people – and had it ready in her peashooter, but thanks to Sora's stupidity, she never got a chance to shoot it.

"HEY! Leave her alone!" he shouted, having summoned his Keyblade and blasted the brightly-lit sensor that had been keeping him in place.

Kiera had just blown out the dart, and it would've hit him right in the neck if Sora hadn't charged at him, causing Sark to move at the last second to fend him off. "Sora, goddamn you!" she groaned, summoning her Keyblade briefly to do the same thing to her sensor. She made it disappear, summoning a tranquilizer gun so she could get him good this time.

"STOP MOVING!" she shouted at Captain Asshole, who apparently wasn't paying attention. He and Sora struggled for a while, making their friends and the other Programs get even more restless with their own struggles.**(A/N: I listened to "The Gutterati?" by The Fratellis on repeat when I was typing this, and for some reason it made good fight music. Hehehehehee...Sorry, couldn't resist. CARRY ON!)**

Riku summoned his Keyblade, doing the same to not only his sensor, but Kairi's. They had just freed themselves and were about to help Donald and Goofy when Sark pinned Sora against the floor of the contraption they were on, his head right by a whirring turbine. "Don't you dare!" Kiera shouted, dropping the gun and jumping onto his back.

"GAH! Don't make me...!" he got out between grunts, struggling for control as she yanked and tugged at his helmet, her nails digging into his face.

"Make you WHAT, Captain Asshole?" she snapped, trying to steer him away from the wall he was trying to ram her against.

Of course, he was more than twice her size, so that didn't work too well. He rammed her against the wall, and she felt something jab her back. Her head knocked against the wall the hardest, making her see stars for a few seconds.

Kairi and Riku had tripped on each other when he rammed Kiera into the wall; him doing that had made the machine lurch, allowing the turbine to hit a couple Programs' sensors on the levels below theirs. They ran off in groups, shouting gleefully.

Sora was charging for Sark again when he bellowed, "Fine! You leave me no choice!" Kiera tightened her grip on him, expecting him to summon Heartless, but he instead pressed four buttons on the keypad towards the front of the machine.

It felt like electricity had suddenly grabbed a hold of her spine, surging all the way up it before branching out to the rest of her. She, Sora, Kairi, and Riku all cried out and fell to the ground at the same time, twitching, the hairs on their skin standing straight up.

"Guys!" Donald quacked in alarm, and Sark pressed the buttons again. The lights turned off on the buttons, and the feeling was gone.

"...When you're stuck onto those sensors, a chip is inserted into your identity discs. That chip allows me to manipulate your programming as long as you're on this ship, be you Program or User. I could de-rezz you _right now_ if I wanted to."

"Then why don't you?" Riku asked with a groan, making Kairi and Kiera look at him.

"Riku, don't make him change his mind!" Kairi exclaimed, the hint of a groan in her voice as well.

Sark chuckled. "Oh, I have much better plans for you." He stopped his smug pacing to lean his face between Sora and Kiera. "And now I know exactly who's going into the Arena first."

Sora gulped, and Kiera narrowed her eyes at him. "YOU, sir...Have truly _earned_ the title of Captain Asshole. Congratulations."

He chuckled some more, pressing her button again for good measure. "Cut it out!" Sora shouted as she was electrocuted again, and after a few moments of laughing, Sark pressed the button again to turn it off. "Ahhh, I've had my fun for now. Revenge is sweet, User. I feel confident you won't be moving for a while," he said with a chuckle as he went back to piloting the machine.

"You're probably right, you undead Asshole," Kiera groaned in response, making Sora sweatdrop.

"...You have absolutely _no_ sense of self-preservation, Kiera, you know that?" Riku asked dully to her left.

"Yeaaahh," she replied with another groan.

* * *

_**FORTY****MINUTES LATER...**_

"Get up," Captain Asshole snapped, making them all jump. Kiera didn't know about the others, but she sure as hell dozed.

In fact, there was drool where her face had been, and she covered it with her shoe as she staggered to her feet, hoping no one saw that. Everyone else was jumping down to the ground. It couldn't have been further than five feet down, so Kiera shrugged and jumped down as well. Her knees nearly buckled, and Goofy caught her by the elbow before she fell.

She grinned at him. "Thanks!"

"Shucks, don't mention it!"

Kairi and Donald were the last to land on the ground, and when they did, Captain Asshole gestured to Kiera's right. "Forward. Move it!"

She fell into place beside Sora, making a face at him. "...This sucks."

"Yeah."

"I'm pretty sure...When he mentioned people going into the Arena first...He was talking about us."

His temple throbbed. "That's a good hunch, Kiera, since he was looking right _at_ us!"

She huffed. "Well, ex-CUSE me, but my brain's kinda _fried_ from all that electricity!"

"And whose fault is that?"

"YOURS."

His jaw dropped rather comically. "H-Huuuh?" He was shoved forward by Sark, who scowled. "You're holding up the line, User."

"What an ASSHOLE!" Kiera hissed.

"I heard that."

"I _meant_ for you to hear it...ASSHOLE."

Sora shook his head. "Don't push your luck with that guy. ...Anyway, do explain, how the hell was that MY FAULT?"

She rolled her eyes. "Because! I was planning to blow a dart at him that would've knocked him out, thus we could successfully make our daring escape. But YOU decided to ruin it by charging at _Asshole_ over there!" she accused, glaring at him.

He sweatdropped before laughing sarcastically. "Wow! I save you, and you hold it against me! You haven't changed a bit."

"I told you that," she said simply. "Why would I change?"

"I figured you would've had to have changed if you didn't ever visit us. The Kiera _I_ know wouldn't do that."

She didn't really have an answer for that one, so she stuck with looking straight ahead. She hadn't pegged Sora for being one to hold a grudge.

They were heading into one of the tallest buildings she had seen in the city's skyline – she could hear a huge crowd cheering from somewhere inside.

* * *

Once they were all situated in some kind of dimly-lit room, she realized how _small_ the group was. There had been rows upon rows of Programs before, even _after_ some had escaped...where were they now?

"Where's all the _other_ Programs?" she asked no one in particular. Riku glanced at her. "Sark threw them down some kind of pit. Didn't you hear their screaming...?"

She shook her head, a shudder running down her spine. "No, I was out cold...That's horrible!"

"Not as horrible as what _you're_ about to go through," Sark commented, standing in front of her and Sora. "He might have a chance, but you? I say you last less than five minutes," he sneered.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Captain Asshole, don't _make_ me spit in your eyes."

He seemed to lack a comeback for that one, so he just chuckled before walking for what looked like a high-tech elevator. "Suit up the Programs!" he bellowed.

"Suit up?" Kiera repeated. "For the Arena? We didn't get that last time for the Game Grid!"

"...That's not a good thing," Sora commented.

"Aw, we don't know that. It COULD still be the same games!" _NOW who's trying to convince themselves everything's still normal..._

Women dressed all in white and silver seemed to come out of the walls, approaching each Program (and the five Users). "Hey, easy on the goods," Kiera growled as the woman who approached her attached armor to her chest, arms, back, and legs.

Her temple throbbed at the way the woman suiting up Sora let her hands slide and roam all over him in the process. "I really don't think all that movement's necessary," she commented to the woman suiting her up. She simply smirked, and Kiera contemplated whether or not she should summon something to jab Sora's woman with.

Before she could, the women retreated back into the wall, making Kiera sweatdrop. "So...creepy...!"

Kairi nodded in agreement, while Riku and Sora just exchanged a look that clearly read "But they were HOT".

Which made Kiera want to laugh since this was a new side of Sora. Well, she knew it had been there, but since she'd been gone, he'd been more...shall we say...OPEN with his hormones.

And yet, he was still so awkward when it came to that kind of thing. It was kind of funny.

Suddenly, the floor dropped out from underneath her, resulting in Kiera screaming bloody murder and assuming the fetal position as she free-fell. "DE JA _FUCKING_ VUUUU!" she wailed, thinking back on those hellish platforms in the Aladdin world from their first visit.

She still hadn't overcome her fear of heights any. And even if she had, this would've only brought it back with a vengeance. Right as she was prepared to just stay falling forever, she hit the floor hard.

* * *

The wind was knocked out of her stomach, and the left side of her face hurt like hell, but the armor DID kind of help.

Kiera curled and uncurled her hands into fists, groaning as she stood up. She was in some kind of cell, with electronic bars made of what appeared to be bright white light on the opening. She walked slowly to the barred opening, looking out in awe. She was greeted with the sight of white-lighted platforms suspended in mid-air, surrounded by what must have been thousands of people. Programs. _Whatever_ the hell they were.

On the platforms were people, two to each platform. They were throwing some kind of technological Frisbee, by the looks of it. "Discs maybe? I mean, this IS Tron, so I'm basically in a computer...Those are some big discs..."

She gasped as the person in front of her was hit by the other person's disc, and they promptly were reduced to a bunch of cubes of some sort.

"...Deresolution," she muttered, swallowing hard. She felt like she was about to throw up. Not only was she going to be higher than she ever thought possible with nothing to stop her if she fell once she stepped out there, but she would be facing off against an opponent without any help whatsoever.

Not that she was a whimp, but...She wasn't good at dodging things flying for her. Not at all. That's why she was goalie whenever they played soccer in gym class! Flying objects just seemed to AIM for her! In other words, she felt completely and totally fucked-over already.

"I...I can do this. Pfft! Chyeah!" she assured herself, waving herself off. She accidentally whacked her hand against the bars in the process, resulting in burning her hand a little.

"Owww, dammit!" she moaned, sucking on her hand. And then the bars lowered, and the Program on the other end was staring right at her.

"**Exit the cell, Program**," a voice commanded from one of the booths to her left. _Must be VIP Suites or something... _Kiera shakily exited the cell, fumbling on her back for a disc. That's where she'd seen the other Program get theirs from.

She pulled one out, looking at her apparent opponent. It was when she got a little closer that she felt it.

It was a kind of..._tingly_ feeling. A pull in the Program's direction. Something she'd never felt before, it was almost like the feelings she felt around Sora. Except it didn't make her feel like doing really embarrassing things to the _Program_, thankfully...

She felt drawn to them all the same. _Drawn...! _"That's it! HEY, YOU!" she called out, but they simply whipped out a disc and tossed it at warp speed.

"SHIT!" Kiera shrieked, hitting the floor as it zoomed for where her middle had been. She gulped. This wasn't going to be easy by any means. She ran for the figure, doing her best to dodge their discs. "HEY! HOLD YOUR FIRE! I HAVE TO TELL YOU SOMETHING!"

One of their discs grazed past her ear, almost catching her. "KIERA, STOP BEING A MORON AND FIGHT!" Sora shouted from somewhere nearby, making her sigh and throw her disc to block one of her opponent's that was aiming for her face.

"SHUT UP, SORA! ...Hey, _listen_, you!" she called out a bit breathlessly, watching glumly as her helmet-wearing opponent did a flip and several other acrobatic maneuvers before throwing the disc at an angle that made it start bouncing off the floor and platforms around them.

Kiera's head jerked every which way, trying to see where it would land. She jumped into the air, flipping by mistake when she tried to turn and see the disc zoom right underneath her.

When she landed on her feet, she was panting, and the opponent cocked their head to look at her. "I know..." she said between pants, "...I'm Kiera. And I'm pretty badass. But seriously, could you...qu...quit it for a second? I have somethin'...something to tell ya!"

The person shook their head as if she were an idiot, grabbing another disc from their back. Without any warning, the platform started to move. Thinking fast, Kiera summoned a hook cemented into the platform, attaching a rope she summoned to it. She had just tied the knot when the platform went upside down, successfully freaking her the hell out.

"THIS ISN'T FUNNY!" she shrieked, eyes squeezed shut.

She opened them just a fraction, noticing the Program was holding on as well. Not to the rope, obviously, but still.

Once it rotated ever-so-slowly back to its original position, Kiera considered just laying down from fried nerves.

Her heart was still trying to beat out of her chest, and she was pretty sure she came close to pissing her pants.

Okay, maybe not. But still.

There was a loud _**ZING**_ noise, and she jumped to her feet as the disc made a hole in the platform, right next to her head. "Would you please...stop...DOING THAT?" she demanded.

"KIERA! STOP BEING A MORON!" Sora shouted again as if that were in her control at the moment.

"...SIT!" she shouted after a moment of thought, dropping to the floor and rolling to avoid another disc.

_**THUD.**_

Kiera dodged the discs, being careful not to launch any of her own, for the next three minutes. "_**PROGRAM! FINISH HER OFF**_!" Sark suddenly bellowed from far above them – the way his voice echoed, she assumed he was on a speaker of some sort.

"They'll have to CATCH ME first!" Kiera shouted back to the air. She was promptly tackled by the program, who straddled her with ease as she struggled.

"DAMMIT, will you just LISTEN for a second? I can help you!" Kiera protested as they raised their disc.

For a split second, the Program tilted their head as if studying her. Kind of like Kiera had when she first felt the connection.

Now that she was trapped below the Program, Kiera knew for sure it was female. The boobs kind of tipped her off, too, but either way...

"_**FINISH HER!**_" Sark shouted again.

"SHUT UP, CAPTAIN ASSHOLE! ...Look, could you at least make it quick? Stop being so dramatic," Kiera muttered, closing her eyes and waiting to teleport them both out at the last second.

Before the Program could finish her off, though, the platform suddenly jerked sideways. Kiera grabbed the rope, holding on, but the Program tumbled off, clutching Kiera's shoe.

"Hold on!" Kiera shouted, but they lost their grip right as the platform was starting to move back to its original spot.

"I'm coming!" Kiera called down to them, jumping down without a second thought. Trying to catch up to the Program, however, she had _plenty_ of thoughts race through her head. The main one being, _WHAT THE FUCK AM I DOING? _

"OHMYGOOOOOOD!" she screamed, doing all kinds of maneuvers in an effort to catch up to the girl. She finally got her by the arm, teleporting them to wherever the hell Sora was.

* * *

They reappeared in a cell, where Sora was on his knees looking at the ground. She could feel his sadness, and it was nearly crushing her. "No...Kiera..."

Kiera tilted her head a little, hoping he'd finish his sentence. "This can't be happening! I never..."

"UNHAND ME!" the girl shouted, making Kiera's temple throb and Sora's head shoot up.

"Kiera! You're alive!"

"YOU MORON, I WAS GONNA TRY AND HEAR WHAT HE HAD TO SAY!" She bellowed at the girl, making her back away a little.

"Yeah, that's right, BACK OFF." Then Kiera huffed and looked at Sora. "C'mon, let's get outta here."

"But...What about the others?"

"We'll come back, but we gotta hurry!" she said impatiently, grabbing Sora and the girl by the arms and teleporting them.

_Somewhere safe!_

* * *

They reappeared yet again in a room with lots of beeping and whirring. Kiera blinked, looking around and ignoring the girl as she ripped off her helmet and started struggling. "Get _off_ me! Unhand me, Program! What is the meaning of this? This is against the rules! Commander Sark _will_ find you, and he _will_ persecute you for this!"

"Yeah, yeah, shut up. Captain Asshole can find me for all I care, I won't go easy on him," Kiera muttered distractedly as she looked around.

"Looks like...a more modern version of the Pit Cell, actually," she commented thoughtfully.

"That's what I was thinking. Which means...TRON!" Sora shouted suddenly, running to his left. Kiera looked and saw him standing on top of a sensor like the ones Sark had on his machine.

The Program stopped resisting, looking at Tron as well. "So...He was _here_ all this time...?"

"You know him, huh?" Kiera asked.

The Program looked at her with ice blue eyes, nodding solemnly. "He fights for the Users. All the Programs had at least heard his name before he disappeared."

_Disappeared?_

"What's _your_ name?"

She simply turned up her nose at Kiera, making her temple throb. "Why should I tell _you_, Program?"

"ALRIGHT, Missy, look here! We're gonna be stuck together for quite a while, I can tell already, so let's get some things straight!" Kiera shouted, stamping her foot.

"Kiera, c'mon, not now," Sora groaned, having freed Tron. Tron stopped thanking Sora to look at Kiera, who narrowed her eyes.

"No no no, she needs to _learn_ a couple things! ...Hi, Tron. Good to see ya."

"Hello!" he said cheerfully, waving a little.

The Program looked down at Kiera questioningly. "You know Tron."

"No shit. NOW, just because you're a ton taller than me does NOT mean you can turn your nose up at me. I don't need your sass, I just saved your goddamn life! You should be _thanking_ me!"

"Yes, I should. But I _won't_," the Program informed her, wrenching her arm out of her grip. "Now, care to explain _why_ you saved my life? You _won_ the Disc Challenge."

Tron's eyebrows shot up. "_You_ participated in the Disc Challenge?"

Sora nodded. "Yeah. She nearly killed herself, though, I don't think she got the whole throw-the-disc-to-survive thing."

Kiera huffed. "I'm standing _right here_, y'know!"

"I know."

Tron cocked his head at Sora. "You have tear marks on your face. Did something happen?"

Sora paled, and a slow grin spread across Kiera's face. "Sora, you were _crying_?"

"N-No!"

"Yes you were! I knew it! I always figured you'd cry if I died, and there's the proof! HA!"

"So _what_? I'd cry if _any_ of my friends died, it doesn't mean anything!" he protested. Kiera shook her head. "Whatever you say, Sora. Actions speak louder than words. _Remeeember_? Gee, wasn't it YOU who told ME that a long time ago?"

"That's different!"

"Oh _really_?"

"What is going ON?" the Program demanded to know, temple throbbing. "You act like children! Someone explain to me why I have gone to three different locations in under a minute without moving! And why am I not dead? And who are you? _Explain yourself_, Program!" she demanded, pointing an accusing finger in Kiera's face.

Tron and Sora let out a whistle, shaking their heads. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," Sora warned.

The Program glanced at him, and Kiera slapped her finger out of her face, temple throbbing majorly. "First off, _never_ do that again. Alright? And stop calling me Program, _you're_ the Program here! I'm Kiera, and that's Sora. _I_ own him. _He_ constantly foils my plans. And we all know _Tron_. Now...Who are _you_?"

The Program sweatdropped. "You saved me without knowing who I am? What kind of Program possesses such flawed logic?"

"Kiera does," Sora commented, and Tron shook his head as Kiera promptly summoned a frying pan and threw it at his face.

_**BAM! CLANG!**_

"OW! DAMMIT, KIERA, A 'SIT' WOULD'VE BEEN BETTER THAN _THAT_!" he shouted, clutching the side of his face. For the record, she missed the majority of his face on purpose. She didn't want to seriously hurt him, after all, but hitting him with a frying pan just sounded so much better than a "Sit" at the moment, so she aimed for the side of his face instead. In fact, maybe she'd start randomly doing extra things to him, just to throw him off once in a while. Yeah!

"Quiet, Sora! ..._Please_ be quieter with your punishments, Kiera, they could come in here any moment," Tron scolded.

"Sorry..." they muttered at the same time.

Then Kiera turned to the Program, who was shaking her head with a weird look on her face. "Children...!"

"Whatever. Now. I _saved_ _you_ because you're a Gatekeeper."

"What? You found one already?" Sora asked in disbelief.

Kiera nodded, and the Program looked even more confused. "I...have never heard of such a function. And I am _not_ a Gatekeeper. I am Avira. I provide help and support for the Users, as well as anti-virus protection. I am also an expert in Firewalls. But a Gatekeeper...What kind of function is that?" she asked with honest curiosity.

"Well...Wait, did you just say you provide help and support for the Users?"

Avira nodded, and Kiera grinned. "Why, that's basically what we do! Only it's just one User in particular. I help and protect Sora, and you help and protect...someone else. Either Riku or Kairi. And that means you'll have to leave the computer and travel with us in the Modern World. No ifs, ands, or buts. SPEAKING of butts, Tron, do you have any idea why Captain Asshole's back?" she asked suddenly, whirling around.

Tron let out a sigh, rubbing his wrists where they had been cuffed. "...This might require quite a bit of explanation."

"Can you try and make it quick? We kind of left everyone else in the Arena, they could have to fight any minute now!" Sora protested.

Tron paled. "Users in the Arena? Who would be _foolish_ enough to..._Sark_," he said darkly, shaking his head.

"_Users_ in the Arena?" Avira repeated in disbelief.

Sora and Kiera exchanged a look. "Is that bad?"

"Users have no idea what to do against Programs – like myself – who have been fighting in the Arena for so many cycles. It's certain death for the Users, which us Programs have sworn against since Tron triumphed against the Master Control Program," she explained, her light brown hair framing her face to make her expression even more grim. That expression quickly turned into one of determination as she whirled around to look at Tron. "We _have_ to protect the Users, Tron."

He nodded before grinning. "And thanks to my User friends coming to my rescue, we can do that!"

Avira's jaw dropped. "You are _Users_?" she asked, looking at Sora and Kiera. Kiera nodded.

"Yep."

She nodded quickly. "I see. That changes things. I did not believe your Gatekeeper function you mentioned, but seeing as you are both Users...I accept your command."

Kiera sweatdropped. "All you had to do was figure out we're Users? Well, dammit, why didn't you just SAY SO?"


	6. ISOs and LightningLasers

**OKAY GUYS. I have to be as brief as possible so the a/n doesn't cut off again. Thanks so much for clearing up the CLU/CLUE thing, i feel kinda lazy for not looking it up, but yeah. ON WITH THE PRESENTS!**

**Me: First off, from Fan. They send, and I quote: "a present for sora AND Kiera. A certain friend of mine gave me this cake for you guys... It's made of an ingredient called... Awesomesauce... Well enjoy!"**

**Sora: O_O Awesomesauce? Is that the really addictive ingredient that Ichigo - **

**Me: I guess we'll find out real soon, won't we? (perverted laugh) Erm, well, MOVING ON! Hahaha KingdomDisney, your review made me laugh XD "But of course Captain Asshole breaks the rules, Avira. He's CAPTAIN ASSHOLE." Anyway, next up is from SummoningShadows18: ****"I figured I'd go small, since I've never given gifts to ya'll (yeah, I live in the south, I can say that). For Sora, a portable airbag, for Kiera's SIT! commands on the go. For Kiera, I have a six pack off "Self-preservation in a Can" (she seems to need it ^^) and a T-shirt with the ever loved slogan "The South Will Rise Again!". Can't wait for more of your dearly loved Shenanigans! Later tater!"**

**Kiera: AWESOME! ...Hehehe. She said tater. **

**Sora: (holds portable airbag lovingly) Ahhh. Thank you. I will cherish this forever! ...Or at least until Kiera leaves again.**

**Kiera: (death glare)**

**Me: EEEEERRRRMMM ANYWAY! We got a LOT from this one, Squall's Kid: ****For Keira: A Book of really random objects to summon so she can torture Sora & everyone else with. A book of puns & jokes to annoy everyone. The How To Insult Clu/Sark Book (yes, that is how you spell Clu) for, well, you get the point. A Sora plushie. A Sora voo-doo doll. A Kairi Voo-doo doll. For Riku: Earplugs, for when Sora & Keira piss you off. 2 extra blindfolds, when you lose yours. The Guide to the Light. (book) Using Darkness for Good for Dummies. A Riku plushie. For Kairi: Keyblading for Girls. A make-up thingy. Jewelery. A Sora plushie. For Sora: Pie. A Keira plusie. A Keira voo-doo doll."**

**Sora: ...How come I have the least amount? -_-+**

**Kiera: Hey, little kids in Africa would LOVE those presents, so SUCK IT UP AND TAKE THEM LIKE A MAN!**

**Me: YEAH! ...And be sure Riku and Kairi get their gifts too, alright? Next up is from Reddiamond29! "Sora: A butt-cushion for all the future Sittings you'll get Kiera: A diary to keep track of all the punishments you give Sora!(I really want to read it when it's finished!) And finally, to the most awesome authoress here on : A bunch of mega-giant inspirational-composing brownies!(Basically, a bunch of cookies/brownies which will give you more inspiration to continue on all your stories!)"**

**Kiera: Hmmm...a diary on which i can write down my day-to-day torture methods? I LIKE IT!**

**Sora: ...I'm just gonna... (hurriedly starts assembling his butt cushions)**

**Me: -_-' Moving on. Lastly from Morce! For Kiera, a punching bag in the shape of Captain A-hole for her to beat up. For Sora, a wisdom gem. For Tron, a new laser canon. For you, a Phantom Zangetsu.(it's the real deal, but the phantom part allows it to bond with anyone, and then the colors change from clear with blue outlines to whatever matches the bonded person) And for everyone, a note: There is a Kingdom Hearts/ Drangon Ball/ Bleach/ Naruto convension in Karakura next Saturday. Want to come? If so, Bring this note to get in for free."**

**AND AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT. This chapter is dedicated to the memory of Char, a friend of a friend of mine. I wish I could've met her...She apparently was a pretty big fan of my first KH fic. She died of a heart disease not long after I finished it. So this chapter - hell, this whole STORY - is dedicated to her. I would like to take this time to thank the readers for their patience, since I know I SUCK at updating things, and for reading, lol'ing, and reviewing. Makes my day, man, I swear it does. AND, and and and, I'd like to hold a moment of silence in Char's memory. **

**...**

**...**

**...**

**And on that cheerful note, read, review,**

**Rukia: (bursts through the door) ENJOOOOOY! ...Am i too late?**

* * *

Tron gestured at the Pit Cell's blocked entrance. "Sora, care to do the honors?" Sora nodded and zapped the barrier, breaking it the same way he had during their last quest.

The two poked their heads outside of it before nodding and cautiously leaving the Pit Cell, Avira and Kiera not far behind.

"So, Tron. Care to explain what all we've missed?" Kiera asked, falling in place next to Sora almost automatically.

Avira made note of it, tilting her head to the side slightly as she watched the Users.

"Yes. Another User found his way in the System; his name was Flynn. With his help, we redesigned the entire infrastructure of the System, getting Programs upgraded and the System itself running more sufficient."

Kiera nodded, and Sora just plain looked lost already. "Right, we noticed..." she then saw Sora's expression and sighed. "He's saying with the help of Flynn, the Programs and the city were made to look and work better."

"Ohhh! Okay."

He chuckled. "Thank you, Kiera. Anyway, where was I? Oh, right. There was even a new breed of Programs developed. Isomorphic algorithms – ISOs. Flynn saw them as a miracle, but CLU – a Program created in his likeness for when he was away – saw it differently.

"He was determined to strive for perfection, and the ISOs were an evolved breed that were different from the other Programs. CLU became obsessed with trying to put a stop to this, and when the time was right, turned on Flynn and myself. I was locked into the Pit Cell, and Flynn escaped. I know nothing of his whereabouts, and have been in the Pit Cell for nearly a hundred cycles."

"A _hundred_?" Sora asked in disbelief.

"That's two years in our world," Kiera replied, making Tron smile and nod.

"Correct! You did the calculations?"

She shook her head, pausing to help kill some Heartless that popped up right as they turned a corner. "No, I just went home after our quest and watched the first Tron movie!" she replied cheerfully. "They mentioned fifty cycles equaled one year in the human world."

Sora sweatdropped. "You and your movies...It's almost like you're cheating!"

Her temple throbbed, and she hit him upside the head with the hardcover textbook she had summoned to beat off one of the weaker Heartless. "Ow!"

"I can cheat all I want to! Not like I asked to be dragged into all this – not two years ago, and not now. ...Although it's good to see you again, Tron," she added quickly as he opened his mouth to comment.

Sora glanced anxiously out of one of the windows they passed. Kiera looked as well, noticing the Arena was in sight, towering above all the buildings near it.

"...Tron."

"Yes?"

"Sora and I have some friends to rescue. We'll be back as soon as we can," she commented simply. Tron nodded in understanding after noticing how worried they both looked, and Kiera grabbed Sora's arm before teleporting them to wherever their friends were.

* * *

They reappeared next to Kairi as she dodged a disc from another helmet-wearing Program. "Grab her arm!" Kiera instructed, trying not to let her temple throb when he grabbed her hand instead, lacing his fingers between hers.

"Sora! You came back for me!" she exclaimed happily, making Kiera sigh exasperatedly as she yanked them around to dodge the discs from the other Program. _Might as well have wind ruffling her hair, sparkly rainbows everywhere, the whole nine yards. _

"Of course I did, Kairi!"

"Uh, this is just _so_ sweet and all, but CAN WE PLEASE KEEP GOING?"

They teleported to Donald next, who was in his cage still. He quacked in surprise. "Kiera! Sora! Ka –"

"Yeah yeah, that's great, grab Kairi's arm or something!" Kiera said impatiently. Donald nodded.

"You're right, we have to hurry to save Goofy and Riku! They're going up against each other right now!"

Kiera nodded in agreement. "Yeah, that won't end well. Let's go then!"

They reappeared _yet again_, right as Sark was shouting commands. "PROGRAMS! LAUNCH YOUR DISCS **NOW**!" he bellowed, and his noise of surprise was audible this time when Kiera and the others reappeared.

"Guys, come grab some arms!" Kiera shouted, and Riku and Goofy sighed with relief before running over.

"...Oh, and HA!" she exclaimed, pointing at the window Sark was standing behind and laughing sarcastically. "Ha. Ha. HA HA HA. Ha. HAAAAAA –"

Sora sighed exasperatedly and grabbed her arm again. "Can you cut it out and teleport us back to Tron?"

"YOU FOUND TRON?" Goofy and Donald exclaimed happily.

Kiera nodded before teleporting them all to wherever Tron was at the moment, hoping Avira was still there.

* * *

It was that last teleportation that did her in, grogginess hitting her like a wave. "Oooh, hold on a second," Kiera muttered, leaning against Sora with droopy eyes as everyone else ran to greet Tron.

"You alright?"

She nodded. "Yeah, just...still not all that good at the whole teleporting-more-than-one-person thing."

Sora was nice enough to let her keep leaning, and they both gawked at Avira as she promptly zapped a few Heartless with what looked like lightning that had shot out of her palm.

"Um..._what_?"

"No. No, that's not fair. _I_ can't do that!" Kiera whined. "Hey, Avira!"

Avira turned to look at her, and frowned. "...What on earth are you doing?" Kairi, Donald, and Goofy turned to look as well. Tron and Riku continued fiddling with a touchscreen desk towards the center of the room.

Kiera looked at them defensively. "...What? Teleporting is tiring. Just gimme a minute. Anyway, Avira. What was that little trick you just did? That really impressive one that I can't do?"

"...Oh. That would be one my defense mechanisms. I am not quite sure what exactly it is, but I know it seems to cause immediate deresolution," she explained, still looking at Kiera as if she were insane.

Sora grinned. "Good thing she didn't pull that on _you_ when you two were fighting. You would've been toast!"

Kiera's temple throbbed, and she stopped leaning on him immediately, choosing a wall instead. "...Sit."

_**THUD.**_

"Oh, come on, I didn't even _deserve_ that one!"

"I know, it just felt good."

Kairi smirked. "Us girls have sensitive egos, you know. ...Well, at least Kiera does." Kiera smiled, temple throbbing on the inside. _What I'd give to be able to sit you..._

"That's one way to put it."

"_I_ believe she has anger issues," Avira suggested, "and perhaps a slight mental illness. Not to mention an _extremely_ flawed sense of logic."

Kiera's temple throbbed so menacingly that Kairi and Sora winced. "..._Thank you_, Doctor Avira."

"I am...not a physician," Avira said carefully, shaking her head. Kiera opened her mouth to reply, but Sora clapped a hand over her mouth instead. "Just let it go, she's a Program."

"B-But..."

"Let it go."

"...Fine. BUT NEXT TIME –"

"Users, we have bigger problems at the moment," Tron called out, still looking down at the desk. Riku was next to him, worry etched all over his face.

"What's up?" Kiera asked, moving to stand beside Riku and peer down at it. It was written in some form of code, with random script in-between words, but a few legible words such as "Purge" and "eradicate" were enough to make her worry.

"I should have known this is what he would do. CLU and Commander Sark are planning to execute a Purge against the ISOs. A mass genocide."

"...What's a genocide?" Sora asked, making everyone turn to look at him.

"It's when a bunch of people are killed 'cause of their religion, race, that kind of thing," Kiera explained distractedly. "When do they plan on going through with it, Tron?"

"If I understand correctly, they should begin very soon. Maybe even in less than one cycle! ...We have to put an end to this, and soon."

They all nodded in agreement, and suddenly Kiera sweatdropped. "...What kind of _idiot_ leaves their diabolical plans just _lying around_?" she wondered.

"Good point," Riku agreed.

"Considering those who wander into my rooms do not live to tell the tale, I do not find it as much of a concern," Captain Asshole said from behind them, making everyone jump and whirl around.

"Oh. Great. Captain Asshole's back."

"Kiera, shut up before he gets mad," Sora muttered.

His eyes narrowed. "I am a Commander, User. You _will_ address me as such."

"...Does not compute," Kiera stated simply, making Tron smirk just a little. Sora looked at her weird, and she rolled her eyes.

"Nerd humor. Oh, and while I'm at it, the cake is a _lie_!" she declared, making _everyone_ look confused.

"...User, I believe administering that punishment on you has done permanent damage to your brain."

"I don't care what you believe, Captain Asshole."

He growled a little in reply. "Arrest them," he stated calmly. Red Guards ran in, binding them all in what looked like thick glow sticks. Kiera noticed they had the same effects as the sensors, because now she couldn't move her hands or arms.

Sark shook his head at Avira. "Program, it is a shame that your disc potential must go to waste over something this foolish."

Avira narrowed her eyes at him. "It is a true shame that you betrayed us, Commander. I will stand beside the Users, for it is the logical and just thing to do," she spat, making even Kiera cringe.

_She's most definitely mastered the frigid-bitch-is-about-to-kill-you tone. ...I like it._

* * *

_**FIFTEEN ****MINUTES LATER...**_

Instead of taking them to the Pit Cell, Captain Asshole led the guards and his new prisoners through all sorts of hallways and chambers.

Finally, Kiera sighed exasperatedly and let out a loud whistle. Everyone jumped and turned to look at her, Sark included.

"...Where the hell are we _going_?" she asked, and he made a noise of either annoyance or slight disgust, it was hard to tell which.

"Usually, scum such as yourself are taken to the Deleted Program Storage and Processing chambers to await deresolution. However, taking your abilities into consideration, I am taking you directly to my Master," he explained sharply. He must've caught on that the only way to get her to shut up was to tell her.

Of course, she still didn't shut up. "You're gonna de-rezz us? Is that _really_ necessary?"

"In my opinion, it is absolutely necessary. And in _my_ opinion, _you_ should be de-rezzed first. But it isn't up to me," he replied.

Kiera huffed again, looking at the others. "Hey. Psst! You guys!" she whispered. They all glanced at her. "...What're we doing? This is the part where we fight back and _own_ everyone!" she hissed.

Kairi and Donald exchanged a look, and Riku and Sora smirked. "...Point taken."

"Okay, yeah, you're right! Let's _do_ this!" Kairi cheered happily. Sora, Kiera, and Riku summoned their Keyblades, not only breaking their sensors but stabbing the guards that had been shoving them forward in the process.

Sark and the other guards whirled around at the noise, discs at the ready. Riku and Sora hurriedly freed the others – minus Avira, who was able to destroy her bindings with her little lightning-lasers that Kiera already envied with a passion.

The guards didn't take long to kill, and soon it was just them and Captain Asshole. Kiera popped her knuckles and neck with a huge grin. "I cannot WAIT for the pleasure of owning your ass a second time, Captain Asshole."

He chuckled as a huge swarm of assorted Heartless appeared, and he pressed a button on the wall that activated some sort of siren. "It appears you will have to wait a little longer!"

And with that, he ran off, leaving them to fight the Heartless.

"Not if I can help it!" Sora shouted. Riku and Kairi exchanged a look, and Kairi nodded.

"You go with him, we can handle things here!" Kiera nodded in agreement, accepting her fate and summoning a drawer of eating utensils.

"Yeah, we can take these guys no problem! Ohhh, how I missed using you, utensils of evilness. MUAHAHAHA – hey, what're you doing!" she shouted in protest as Sora dragged her with him.

"You're coming with us!" he informed her.

"But...I was about to use my –"

"You _still_ might be able to use them," Riku pointed out before dashing ahead of the two. "Hurry up!"

Kiera sighed before smirking at Sora as they ran to catch up. "You just can't go anywhere without me, can you?"

"Well, since you hate Captain Assho – I mean, Sark, that much...I figured I should let you tag along."

"...Yeah. Okay. Stick with that."


	7. Cattle Prods and Kairi & Kiera Bonding!

**BACK! Sorry again for the long wait, I had this saved to a different computer than the one I was using, and I was at my dad's and couldn't get to it, and...and...BUT NOW I'M BACK, BETCHES.**

**Sora: That's a bit harsh.**

**Kiera: (eyeroll) She didn't call them LITERAL bitches, she was just...You know what, nevermind, ON WITH MY PRESENTS! :D**

**Me: Riiight. First gifts are from Morce! A cake and a note! The cake has Kiera wacking Captain Asshole with a sledgehammer twice as big as he is, and Sora?**

**Sora: Yeah?**

**Me: The note's for you. (Note: SORA! You had BETTER tell me where you put my Shumizunaro zanpakuto and my keyblades RIGHT NOW or you WILL regret it!)**

**Sora: O_O Um...Under...the bed.**

**Kiera: (Shake of the head) That is the most OVERUSED hiding place in the history of the planet. Anyway, when do I get MY gifts, SPECIFICALLY FOR ME?**

**Me: You're seriously letting this gift thing go to your head, aren't you?**

**Kiera: What can I say, I like gifts.**

**Me: ...Erm, anyway. Next gifts are from SummoningShadows, and OH! HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY! I'm glad I got an update out there on your birthday :D. Anyway, her gifts: "For Kiera, an ultra lazer pointer so she wont feel as bad about not being able to do Avira's lighting lazers thing (dont shine it in your eyes, it WILL burn your retinas), and a tiny Kairi in a bottle. Now, why would you want a Kairi in a bottle? To shake it up of course (rainbows sold seperately)! Now for Sora, a roll of duct tape for when he gets to annoyed with Kiera, and a yellow snuggy with Mickey's crown pattern all over it...yes, join the snuggy cult!"**

**Kiera: (Eyeing Kairi-in-a-Bottle greedily) Can I play with that now?**

**Me: No, that's rude. Wait until all the gifts are handed out! **

**Sora: Snuggy...Never heard of it.**

**Kiera: You haven't heard of a LOT of good stuff.**

**Me: No comment, too many perverted ones going through my head. MOVING ON! Next, from Sayonara (for I am lazy and must shorten everyone's names :D), starting up with a question for Riku! "...You didn't get any muffins and cookies while you were in the darkside cuz the darkness ate 'em all, didn't you...? And this is the REAL REASON why you went all coo-coo-for-darkness-puffs? ****GIFT FOR KIERA: You get Disney's Nighttime Spektacular Soundtrack and four free passes to go and witness it yourself! (WARNING: Going on this trip may cause moody-ness in the form of happiness, a strange urge to smile at all times, tears of joy, the need to try every ride, the need to buy a sombrero, the need to act like a mime in France, and the need to sing random disney songs at random points of your stay. We are in no way responsible for any and all accidents that may occur if one called 'Kairi' is in group, nor are we responsible if one called 'Riku' gets free pass to visit Mickey. Any and all accidents to one call 'Sora' and one called 'Kiera' will be followed by recompensation and free gifts. Donald and Goofy will get paid extra if they are present. Enjoy your stay~!)"**

**Kiera: YAY! THAT'S GONNA BE FRICKING AWESOME!**

**Riku: (sniffles) No...No muffins OR cookies... TT_TT**

**Sora: (Pats back) There there, Riku. If you ask nicely and kiss major ass for up to a week beforehand, Kiera'll summon you as much as you want.**

**Kiera: (Eye twitching) I heard that, moron.**

**Me: MOVING ON! Next up is from XxFallingStarxx, a new reviewer if I'm not mistaken, so I thank you for reviewing! "For Kiera: a pop up picture book of "how to keep your Sora from being perverted". A bookmark for it with a bell on the top and...A cool hat! As for Sora... He gets a tormenting picture of Kiera when they were in Halloween town on their last quest. Give kiera a chance to put that book to work. :)"**

**Kiera: (Evil grin)**

**Sora: ...I hate my life sometimes.**

**Me: Aww, there there. LET'S MOVE ON NOW, SHALL WE? I don't want my author's note getting cut off again... Next is from EtudeinE, who's ALSO a new reviewer, so I thank you too! Also, your review made me grin :D. "For Sora, you get a HUGE glomp from me, a picture of baby Kiera so that you can RECONSIDER your feelings for Kairi, a HOW-TO-PLAY-A-COMPUTER book because you suck at it and A 100000000 pack of cookies~ since I'm your fangirl...  
For Kiera, you get a trophy for being "THE CLOSEST CHARACTER LIKE ME" except for the cursing~ A hug from me too, a new iPod + an iPad and 1234567890 packs of cookies plus 987654321 glasses of OJ! For , you get the HUGE OUT OF 10 glomp, a question that asked "How can you make your story so funny and EPIC?" from me, and 10000000000000000 packs of cookies. For Kairi, you get a bunny doll (don't tell her there's actually a bomb inside of it okay? Especially Sora, since I can make Kiera tell you to sit...)"**

**Sora: There's a WHAT inside of that bunny?**

**Kiera and Me: Nooothing...**

**Sora: Whatever, can I have those cookies now? **

**Me: Sure, have at it. And to answer your question, I swear the epicness and funniness just comes to me. The only thing I can say is that a lot of the random things that make it funny come from awkwardness of daily life put into KH perspective, your average teenage hormones, being around a family full of short fuses, and my own weird sense of humor that seems to appeal to lots of people. ...I didn't sound full of myself just then, did I? ^^; And yes, I approve that nickname! XD**

**Sora: (Points to pancake-cake) Where'd this come from?**

**Me: OH, that's from Reddiamond29. And you're welcome for mentioning you in the last chapter, I try to mention anyone who gives me/us/Kiera/Sora something! :D OH, and where's Donald?**

**Kiera: (Teleports away before reappearing with Donald) Right here.**

**Me: (Slaps duct tape over beak) THAT'S from I Married a Cat. And by the end of this chapter, I'd say it's well deserved. You'll see what I mean, guys. ;D And Invader Gilly, thanks for your reviews to both this and its prequel! I'm glad you like this series, along with my Bleach fic! And a big thank-you to AAAALL my readers and reviewers! Now, read, review, en - ...(looks around suspiciously) ...Rukia?**

**(Silence)**

**Me: ..Oh, cool. Well then, in that case, en - **

**Rukia: (Brought into the room by Kiera) ENJOOOOOY! ...You can't beat me at my own game, bitch.**

**Me: Whyyyy you...! **

**Sora, Donald, and Kiera: (Watching the ensuing catfight) ...Well, anyway, enjoy!**

**Me: (Holding Rukia hostage by her hair) OH! Before I forget, I just was curious...what world do you think they should visit next? :D Anyway, EN- (tackled by Rukia)  
**

* * *

Kiera laughed maniacally as she practically skipped behind Sora and Riku, launching her eating utensils (preferably forks) at any Heartless that got in her way. "This is _so_ much more fun! Ahhhh, I missed this," she said cheerfully, making Sora sweatdrop.

"Good to know you missed _something_."

"Don't be stupid, I missed _someone_ too," she informed him as they came to a stop in front of a huge door.

Sora grinned at that. "Really?"

"Yep. I really missed Kairi. So much. You just don't even know. I find her fascinating. ...No, really, I do," she said defensively at his expression.

"Seriously, Kiera, you should stop being so jealous of Kairi. It's not a good look for you."

Riku sighed heavily as she then summoned a pillow and whacked him in the face with it, sending him flying into the wall. "OW! JEEZ, KIERA, WHAT KIND OF PILLOW IS _THAT_?"

"ONE FILLED WITH ROCKS, YOU JERKFACE! I am NOT jealous of KAIRI!" she fumed, stomping her foot for emphasis.

"Uh...guys..."

"Really, Kiera? Coulda fooled _me_! I bet you're jealous of her because not _only_ is she taller, but she's easier to get along with! Not to mention she's _nicer_..."

"YOU TAKE THAT BACK!" she screeched, hitting him with the pillow again.

"_Guys_..."

"OW! SEE? YOU'RE SO _HOSTILE_!"

"I'M _HOSTILE_ BECAUSE IT'S THE ONLY WAY TO GET _THROUGH_ THAT THICK SKULL OF YOURS!"

"And what _exactly_ are you trying to get through? BECAUSE I'M NOT GETTING IT!"

"ARGH, I forgot how AGGRAVATING it was trying to TALK TO YOU! I'm amazed I haven't killed you yet!"

"You almost did, if you recall!"

"...DON'T YOU EVEN GO THERE, SORA! IF I KNEW YOUR LAST NAME, I _SO_ WOULD'VE _ADDED IT_ JUST THEN TO CONVEY HOW PISSED YOU JUST MADE ME!" she shouted as she repeatedly hit him with the rock-filled pillow.

"GUYS..."

"JEEZ, KIERA, I'M BEGINNING TO MISS THE _BREAK_ I HAD FROM YOU FOR TWO YEARS!"

"Oh yeah? SO AM I! I had a _job_, I had things under _control_, I was looking at becoming a _nurse_, I was learning some medical stuff, I was making friends, and I _even_ almost had a _boyfriend_! But NOOOO, you had to show up and SCREW IT ALL UP!"

"YOU THINK I _LIKE_ HAVING TO DEAL WITH YOU ALL OVER AGAIN? ...Wait...BOYFRIEND? _WHAT_ BOYFRIEND? WHEN DID _THAT_ HAPPEN?"

"WHAT DO _YOU_ CARE!"

"I-I-I don't, but still...! WHO COULD _STAND YOU_ LONG ENOUGH?"

"MAX CAN!"

"Max? ...That's a stupid name."

"WHY YOU LITTLE...!"

"GUUUUUYS!" Riku shouted, making Kiera make her pillow disappear mid-swing and Sora jump to his feet. Riku's temple was threatening to throb right off his head as he stared at them, eye twitching slightly. The door was now open, and CLU and Captain Asshole were watching them with highly amused expressions. CLU then started clapping, making Riku's eye twitch even more.

"You guys just ruined any hopes of a sneak-attack we might have had..."

CLU chuckled, making Kiera feel like kicking herself. "Ah, well, that was a nice little show. I will never understand User logic. Nor their incessant need to shout to those right next to them. I take it the red-haired one is the User you spoke of, Sark?"

"Yes, Master. That's the one. She's got quite the tongue, too, as you can see."

Kiera bowed in reply. "Why _thank you_, Captain Asshole! You flatter me!"

"Yeah, Kiera, let's make him _more_ mad," Sora grumbled, prompting her to glare at him.

"SIT."

_**THUD.**_

"Do you two ever just STOP for a few seconds?" Riku wondered, shaking his head at their stupidity.

CLU stroked his chin thoughtfully, staring at her. "User. Do that again."

"What, sit Sora? SIT!"

_**THUD.**_

"YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO DO WHAT THE BAD GUY _WANTS_ YOU TO DO!" Sora shouted as Riku facepalmed and summoned his Keyblade.

"Can we just defeat these guys now?" he asked them. Sora looked to Kiera, who released her sit's hold on him and let him stand. He summoned his Keyblade as well, and Kiera summoned a bucket of water.

"Captain Asshole's mine," she growled.

CLU and Asshole simply started laughing at them. "How do you plan on defeating us if I have your lives in the palm of my hand?" Asshole wondered, holding up his remote control.

The three of them gulped, and Kiera carefully set her water down, already formulating a plan. "Alrighty, Asshole, I surrender," she said woefully, holding up her hands.

Sora and Riku gawked at her, eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets. "Kiera, the hell're you doing?"

She looked meaningfully at Sora, glancing between the bucket and the remote control, and he slowly nodded. "...She's right. Riku, he's gonna de-rezz us if we don't!"

"Sora, are you crazy? We're de-rezzed either way!" he shouted as Sora dropped his Keyblade and held his hands up as well.

"Riku, just do it."

Riku stared at them both before sighing and making his Keyblade disappear, holding his hands up. Kiera winked at them before turning to look at Sark. "_Well_, Captain Asshole? What now?"

He chuckled. "_Now_, I electrocute you until you lose consciousness so I may imprison you without running the chance of you helping your friends escape." And with that, he clicked the button, just as she'd hoped.

The volts immediately coursed through her body, and she groaned as she slowly gripped the bucket so as not to draw his attention. He walked towards them as they all fell to the ground, groaning and twitching. As he laughed and moved to kick Kiera, Sora rolled over to look at her.

"NOW!"

She threw the bucket up, and it soaked both him and his remote control. The volts immediately stopped, and Riku re-summoned his Keyblade to take out the Guards that moved to Sark's aid.

Sark himself was currently clutching his arm, the sparks shot out by his fried remote control having damaged the circuitry there. Kiera smirked at him, summoning a cattle prod. "It's over, Captain Asshole. Now it's time for me to single-handedly kick your ass!"

* * *

While she chased him around with the cattle prod, occasionally dodging the discs and other various objects he threw her way to deter her, Sora had set a trap for CLU.

He had seen the way he'd been eyeing his Keyblade, and had purposely left it sitting there while being electrocuted so as to lure him closer. Just as planned, CLU tried to take the Keyblade as Sora "struggled" to get up after the shocks were out of his system. "With a weapon like this...the Purge will be over in a matter of minutes...It could wipe out a whole _nation_!"

Sora smirked as he willed the Keyblade to disappear, reappearing back in his hand before lunging toward the now defenseless CLU. "Not if I can help it!" he shouted, only to be blocked by a disc. He and CLU pushed against each other's weapons, each hoping their weapon lasted against the force. Finally, Sora used the position to his advantage; he put all his weight onto his Keyblade as it dug into the disc before swinging the lower half of his body, kicking CLU square in the chest as he flipped off of him.

CLU staggered backward, clutching his chest as Sora gripped his weapon tighter. CLU chuckled, throwing his disc into a wall and summoning a new one. "So _that's_ how we're going to play, is it?"

As they continued blocking the other person's attacks and lunging for each other, Kiera finally caught up with Captain Asshole, sliding on her stomach across the floor and catching his leg with the cattle prod. She laughed somewhat maniacally as the electricity fried the circuitry in his right leg, making him fall over.

"Whatchya gonna do NOW, Captain Asshole?" she wondered, straddling him and pressing the rod of the cattle prod against his neck as he struggled. Kiera tilted her head to the side thoughtfully. "Hm...I like the sound of that...Captain Asshole. Has a nice ring, doesn't it? And it suits you so nicely."

And with that, she summoned a stereo system before saying in a voice so venomous and sharp that even Sark winced, "Captain...ASSHOLE!"

Not long after, the stereo system started playing her voice saying his name over and over, much to Sora's amusement and Sark's chagrin. "...Is she serious?" Riku wondered with a sweatdrop, not even looking as he stabbed a guard in the face with his Keyblade.

"Oh, I'm a _very_ serious person," Kiera replied, tilting her head back to look at Riku upside-down. Sark used that as an opportunity to pull a disc out of his back and tackle her to the ground, holding the disc just above her neck.

"I...am going to _thoroughly_ enjoy this," he informed her, a rather evil glint in his eye.

Kiera glared up at him. "You...are a _true_ asshole. The _captain_ of all assholes. In fact...you're a..." she trailed off, letting the constant loop-track playing finish her sentence.

"Captain...ASSHOLE!"

"Thank you, stereo system." Sark let out a growl, raising his disc to plunge it into her neck and de-rezz her.

"KIERA!" Sora called out, causing him to get kicked into a wall by CLU. Riku defeated another guard with one swing before tossing his Keyblade, aiming for Sark, while Kiera just kneed him in the groin.

All of that action was dull in comparison once Tron dropped from a balcony and landed on Sark's back, pulling him backwards off of Kiera and wrestling with him on the floor. Kiera quickly got to her feet, and Riku called his Keyblade back to him just in time to block another Heartless and two guards.

"Tron!" she exclaimed, grabbing her cattle prod as the two continued to struggle for dominance over the other. She was about to stab it into Sark's back when a Heartless got her from behind, making her curse rather loudly and swing the rod back into the Heartless, stabbing it through the face.

"Goddammit," she hissed, the Heartless having scratched her on a place on her back she couldn't touch. Meaning she couldn't heal it. She shook it off as best she could and moved to help Tron when he suddenly plunged a disc into Sark, almost immediately de-rezzing him.

Kiera shook her head as Tron got to his feet, panting. "I _really_ wanted to kill Sark myself, but...that whole scenario was so badass that I don't mind if it was you, Tron," she informed him. Then she smiled and patted him on the back. "Thanks for saving my ass, by the way," she said cheerfully, making him smile back and nod.

"My pleasure."

They then went to work in helping Riku defeat the last handful of Heartless and Guards, Tron killing the last one right as Sora landed what looked like a fatal blow to CLU.

He staggered back before falling to the ground, groaning as he crawled away. "This...isn't over...We're just getting started...Keybearer..." he got out between groans, and they watched as he evaporated within a black mass, much like the Organization Members had.

"We did it!" Sora exclaimed, but Kiera's brows furrowed. _I really don't like the way that ended...Shouldn't he have de-rezzed?_

But all she said was, "Well. _That_ was rather anti-climactic."

Suddenly, the heavy door was kicked open by Avira, making Kiera sweatdrop. "Haven't known ya for more than an hour and you're already thoroughly enjoying showing me up, huh Avira?"

"What logic does 'showing you up' hold, User? Am _I_ to blame for your lack of skill in the same areas as a Program such as myself?" she asked with a rather mocking air, and Sora held Kiera back by her shirt as she attempted to lunge for her.

"LEMME AT HER, JUST _ONE _PUNCH!"

"Calm down, you're gonna be _stuck_ _with her_ for the rest of the quest!"

"...Are you TRYING to make me commit suicide?"

Kairi sweatdropped, looking at Riku. "Why is Kiera's voice repeatedly calling me an asshole?"

That made everyone but Kiera sweatdrop; Kiera just started laughing uncontrollably. "Hahahahaha! That was good, Kairi! ...Oh, you were serious. Nah, that's my nickname for Commander Sark, remember? I was just doing that to piss him off even further," she said cheerfully as she made the stereo equipment disappear.

"Ohhh, right. I guess I just assumed..."

"That I would mock you and bash you at every and any opportunity? Me? Noooo..."

Sora sweatdropped as the two girls smiled at each other, leaning towards Riku. "...Did they just have some sort of moment?" he stage-whispered.

Riku shook his head. "I have absolutely no clue."

"...Girls are weird."

"I know, Sora, I know."

They all whirled around to look as Sark's fried remote control suddenly started making sizzling noises again. It then floated into the air, and Kiera started laughing. "HA! Another key unlocked thanks to me!"

"What? _I_ unlock the keys, not you."

"Yeah, but this is the second one I've helped you figure _out_," she announced proudly.

Sora quickly unlocked the next world, which killed the usual dramatic atmosphere, just so he could furrow his brows at her and continue to question her. "What're you talking about?" he asked as Tron and Avira started bending over some sort of control panel and pressing buttons rapidly.

"WELL, _I_ fried his control, which turned out to be the key item, right? And then there was that time in Memphis where momma's beer can was the item!" Kiera explained cheerfully.

Sora shook his head. "Nononono, _I_ was the one who activated that one. It did it _after_ I kissed you, remember?"

"After you WHAT?" Kairi asked dubiously, making Riku laugh as the other two flinched.

"I-I-It was nothing," they said quickly, shaking their heads.

"Yeah," Donald said slyly, "they kissed a LOT on our last quest!"

The steam was practically coming out of their ears at that, while Kairi sighed and shook her head. "Say no more, I get it."

"But Kairi...!"

"Nope, I see. Cave drawings mean nothing compared to actual KISSES!"

"BUT KAIRIIII!" they both whined, drooping at yet another person converted into thinking they were romantically involved.

"I should whack you with a Keyblade where you stand, Sora."

"KAIRI!"

"_We've_ only kissed ONCE, and that was last Christmas! I can't _believe_ you!" she exclaimed, making Kiera's temple throb.

"You did WHAT."

"Aw, Kiera, now's not the time for YOU to be jealous too!"

"I am NOT JEALOUS!" both girls shouted, and Kiera summoned her frying pan to throw at him again.

"Ow!" he shouted as she decked him, and Kairi nodded approvingly.

"Nice shot, Kiera."

"Thanks."

And with that, both girls stomped over to Tron and Avira, making "Hmmph!" noises as they passed him. Sora sighed heavily, drooping, and Riku and Donald were laughing their asses off.

"Way to go, Donald."

"Shucks, Sora, sounds like you dug your own hole this time," Goofy commented, making his temple throb.

"So, whatchya doin', Tron?" Kiera asked, peering from behind Avira's back.

Avira turned to look at her, blinking down at Kiera. "...Is there a reason for you standing behind me, User? Would it not be more logical to move to stand beside your fellow User, or by my _side_ instead of staring at my _back_?"

Kiera's temple throbbed as she moved to stand by Kairi. "No need to gimme a lecture, _Program_, jeez."

Tron chuckled. "Don't worry, Kiera. The longer Avira's with you and our friends, the more she'll grow fond of them. Just like me!" he said cheerfully.

"I think she's _beyond_ hope," Kiera grumbled.

"Are you saying that because you are envious of my superior height and stature? I notice you stare up at me with an envious look quite often since I first encountered you," Avira noted with honest curiosity. "It seems you stare at your fellow User often as well. Is it due to her _also_ superior height and stature? I also noticed we have superior chest sizes compared to yours, so perhaps –"

"ANYWAY, Tron, whatchya doin' over there?" Kiera practically shouted, making Sora and Donald snicker.

"I'm reprogramming the systems that were under CLU's command. They should return back to their normal functions any moment now," he said with a laugh, trying to contain said laughter so as not to embarrass her even more.

"So now you can be their leader again," Sora said hopefully, and Tron nodded.

"Consider Hollow Bastion OS open to the Users again!" he announced happily.

Sora smiled. "Good to know you're okay, Tron. Everyone was so worried about you! ...But now we have to go," he added sadly, and Tron nodded.

"You'll be back, correct?"

"Of course we will!"

Avira held out her hand to Tron, who shook it. "I am honored to have assisted you in fighting for the Users, Tron. I wish I could help you reprogram those harmed by CLU's influence..."

He smiled at her. "Your place is with the Users for now. To continue to help them on their journey, since I can't." And with that, he pressed a couple buttons on what looked like a more modern version of the laser in Ansem's lab, and they were all zapped out of the system.


	8. Themes, Books, & Counseling Plans!

**Me: Back again! **

**Sora: With a tooooon of pages.**

**Kiera: 12, wasn't it?**

**Me: Something like that. And I kinda feel bad since only the last page or so had to do with the next official new world they go to, but hey, I couldn't just jump right into it. I went with one I got the most suggestions for, and I was pretty glad that a lot of suggestions were worlds I already planned on getting around to doing. :D ANYWAY, ON WITH ZE GIFTS!**

**(The first ones are from Lvl-ZeR0. "For Kiera: an automatic sit Sora button (cause he will be doing a lot of idiotic stuff that results in his sitting and that will put a lot strain to your voice so with this you can just press the button if he does something stupid and PRESTO instant sit Sora), and for Sora: a book entitled "Easy Guide to Understanding Women" (don't be disappointed if all you find are blank pages and a suicide note from the author apologizing for being unable to understand women)" )**

**Kiera: WHOO-HOO! My life just got ten times easier. Thanks! (moves to grab button)**

**Me: Na-ah-ahhh, wait until we're done.**

**Kiera: Aw. (Droops)**

**Sora: Whew, thank God. (Opens book) ...Ah, dammit, there really IS just a bunch of blank pages and a suicide note. **

**Me: He warned you.**

**Sora: I know, but I was hoping he was just joking!**

**Me: Doesn't look that way. Anyway, moving on! Fan, I'm SO SORRY I forgot to put your review in last chapter! As compensation, I give you my last chocolate-chip cookie and a hot fudge sundae. Anyway, you still got gifts from them this chapter. ("Sora gets a motorcycle and Kiera... Well Kiera you don't get any because of your rude behavior this chapter!") **

**Kiera: B-B-B-But he deserved it!**

**Sora: HARDLY! You're just as guilty, Kiera, you didn't have to kiss me back. In fact, you coulda commanded me to stop kissing you at any time those MULTIPLE times we kissed on our last quest. But you didn't. Because you know you want me.**

**Kiera: SIT!**

**THUD.**

**Sora: ...Please just keep going, Mandy... (groans)**

**Me: With pleasure. Next set's from Kingdom Disney: "I dunno if you have these already, but you've now got... Sora and Avira voodoo dolls! Just in case."**

**Sora: Awww, crap.**

**Kiera: (laughs evilly) Thank you so much!**

**Me: Hold off on the torture just a little while longer, alright? Next we have some stuff from EtudeinE: "since I felt bad for Sora, no I'm not giving you a How to deal with women book, more like a mass destruction weapon... Just kidding, I'm giving you a book(Okay, it's a guide about anime...) and 2 cookies since every sit you suffer equals an cookie from Ms. etude! For Kiera and Kairi, I'll give you two pads since you to seems to have the time of month this chapter..."**

**Kiera: (temple throb) ...He still deserved it.**

**Me: Whatever makes you feel better, Kiera. These are from Reddiamond29, and they'd like me to tell you, Sora, that they like to see you punished. And I agree, there's nothing creepy about that statement...**

**Sora: (major temple throb) Just get on with it, please.**

**Me: Sure. "For Kiera: a traditional old frying pan for whacking people(meaning Sora) over the head. It's kinda to replace the one you lost in chapter 7, 'cause I had to borrow that one to fry eggs in... Sora!: Well... I don't really know what you want, but you can have another cake, like the one I last gave you all. And for the most awesome-y authoress!: Another review!... Nah, just kidding. You get a cookie! And another! And another! And a pillow so you can make yourself comfortable in front of the computer. Actually, you get a plush-chair!"**

**Me: (dives to sit in plush chair) SCORE! THIS IS MUCH BETTER THAN MY WOODEN ONE!**

**Kiera: Hey, how come you can get your gifts NOW?**

**Me: 'Cause I'm the author.**

**Kiera: Ohhh, okay.**

**Me: Yep. ONWARD! These are from Allie X 'I and Danna:"For Keira: a bewitched charm bracelet with charms representing the worlds you have and will visit that also has a built in radar to help you find your father wherever he is along with your mother and friends you hold dear to your heart. For Sora: a new drive form that is orange, aloes you to wield two blades and gives you a boost in agility and magic so you can escape from Keiras sit commands. For the Authoress: a new lap top use can customize anytime you want which includes 10 hundred songs of all the latest hits and a lifetime pass to see any movies along with two friends to see for free. For all three of you: A lifetime supply of cakes, brownies, cookies, candies, all of the sweets you can imagine that can be shared with you and all of yours friends in the stories." **

**Kiera: (stars in eyes) These presents keep getting better and better...!**

**Sora: I know! **

**Me: Yep! These are from Sayonara Yasashii Akumu: "Kiera gets: 1001 ways to piss people off (the book for bored people), some giant, epic TNT-enfused fireworks, a spy camera to record things and blackmail people, a "how to getalong with Kairi and team up with her for revenge on Sora" book, and a remote control to shut Avira up when she gets too annoying. Sora gets: a smack in the face for almost two-timing, a 'how not to piss girls off' book, and a therapist for when all of this is over. Riku gets: a big hug from me (since the darkness lied to me too) two blank voo-doo dolls for when SOME PEOPLE get to be too much, some earmuffs to block out even the loudest noises, and a chocolate muffin."**

**Riku: (sniffles and takes gifts before slowly walking away) ...Thank you.**

**Everyone: O_O**

**Me: Erm...I think this is our last set of gifts. They're from Nitedream, who I thank for reviewing for the first time, as well as blackroselover :D. "As a present from me, I just want to give Riku a lounge chair and popcorn so he can watch Sora and Kiera's fights in comfort. Just don't choke on the popcorn laughing, Riku! :)"**

**Riku: (Runs back to take the gifts before slowly leaving again) ...Thank you. **

**Kiera: ...He's NOT okay.**

**Sora: Agreed. **

**Me: ...Erm...yeah, read, review, en-**

**Rukia: (pops up from within my closet) ENJOOOOOY!**

**Me: ...Damn, every time! **

* * *

Kiera shook herself a little once they were back in Ansem's Lab. "Whew. Never get used to that whole zapping thing," she muttered.

Yuffie grinned at them, and Leon crossed his arms. "Welcome back, guys!"

"Who's this?" Leon asked, gesturing to Avira.

Kiera looked over to the Program and noticed her clothes had changed into a bright blue shirt with an open black vest and black shorts. And rather kickass black sneakers that looked like the love-children of Converse and combat boots.

"...Okay, I call _major_ bullshit. Where the _hell_ did those clothes come from? Shouldn't you be naked or in your Tron clothes right now?" Kiera exclaimed, making everyone sweatdrop.

"Anything's possible with magic, Kiera," Kairi commented. "By your logic, we wouldn't be able to change outfits with certain worlds, either."

"...Point taken," she grumbled, and Avira looked less than thrilled with this change in appearance.

"What on earth...? What is this strange material? And where am I? Is this the Human World you all spoke of?" she asked somewhat frantically, looking around at the people in the room and the room itself.

She jumped back in surprise when she saw the computer. "This is what we exited out of, yes? It took us out of the System?" she asked, pointing to the laser that was positioned from the ceiling so that it was pointing down at them.

"You brought a Program out with you?" Leon exclaimed, and they all pointed to Kiera.

"IT WAS HER IDEA!"

"...Gee. Thanks, guys. She's a Gatekeeper," Kiera explained, and everyone's eyes but her own and Sora's widened.

"_Gatekeeper_? You found one already?" Yuffie asked, sliding over to Avira and inspecting her.

"What is the _meaning_ of this?" Avira snapped, glaring down at Yuffie as she moved her arms up and down before turning the Program around.

"Just making sure you came out all in one piece. I've never heard of a _Program_ coming out of the computer before!"

"So...wait...She's one of our Gatekeepers?" Kairi asked, pointing between her and Riku.

"Which one?" Riku asked, all of them watching with sweatdrops as Avira continued to question everything Yuffie was doing.

"I'm...not sure," Kiera admitted. "Don't one of ya'll _feel_...something? Coming from her?"

"Yeah, like tinglies?" Sora chimed in, moving to stand next to Kiera as she stared at Avira.

"Now that you mention it...it feels kind of like a pull in her direction," Riku commented thoughtfully, and Kairi shook her head.

"I don't feel that at all. She must be yours, Riku!" she said cheerfully.

That caught Avira's attention, and she turned to look at Kairi with her ice blue eyes. "I belong to no one. I may fight for the Users, but I do not belong to any of you. You would do best to remember that, User."

"My name's Kairi," she replied, totally unfazed by her icy tone. Kiera and Sora snickered at Avira's expression, which she quickly tried to cover up with her standard neutral one.

"I see. I will refer to you as Kairi, then. Which one of you is this 'Riku'?" she asked, looking at them all.

"I am," Riku answered, holding up a hand of acknowledgment.

"Ah. Then I suppose that, from what the other female User has explained to me...though her explanatory skills are rather lacking...I am to aid you specifically. Correct?"

"Hey, Avira, try sitting him," Sora said eagerly, making everyone sweatdrop.

"Sitting him? What is 'sitting'?" she asked, cocking her head to the side to study him.

"Just say 'Sit' and mean it as a command to Riku," Kiera explained, and Avira immediately turned to look intently at her. It looked like that was how she was able to really understand what they were saying, which Kiera supposed made sense seeing as she had no idea what they were talking about.

"It's what I do with Sora when he annoys the hell outta me or does something unbelievably stupid. Like so..."

"Kiera, I don't think she needs a demonstration –"

"Oh, Sora, I think she does. SIT!" she shouted, and Avira's eyes widened as Sora immediately crashed to the floor ass-first.

_**THUD.**_

"...Yeah, like that," Sora groaned, and Kiera relinquished control so he could stand back up.

"Go on, give it a try," he urged, obviously really eager to see someone else endure the same punishment he had to put up with.

"Er...SIT?" Avira shouted uncertainly.

Riku flinched, ready to hit the ground hard, but nothing happened. Kiera snorted a laugh as Sora slumped in defeat, feeling his slight depression and frustration.

"_What_? That makes no sense, that's pretty much all Kiera can _do_," Kairi commented with bewilderment, making Kiera's temple throb.

"I'm sorry, Kairi, but what all can YOU do?"

"Know when to be quiet, for one."

"Why you...!"

"GUYS," Leon shouted, making them jump and turn to look at him. "Why don't we take her to Merlin? He'll know what to do about her Gatekeeper abilities...or lack thereof."

"Fine," Kiera and Kairi huffed, crossing their arms before stomping off.

Riku and Sora shuddered before following, Leon not far behind. "Scary..."

Donald and Goofy exchanged a look as they all left. "It's like we weren't even here, Goofy!"

"D'aw, they couldn't help it, Donald. Avira sure is causin' a lot of excitement!"

"I suppose you are right, but I do not understand the meaning behind any of this," the Program-in-question commented from behind them, making them jump.

* * *

"Gawrsh! I didn't see ya there, Avira!"

"I apologize for startling you. Tell me, are you both Users as well?"

"Of course we are!" the small one exclaimed, making her brows furrow.

"Is that so? You look quite _strange_ compared to the other Users..."

"Around here, Users aren't always human," the darker-haired female User explained as she walked on Avira's left. "Users live on all different kinds of worlds, and they come in all different shapes, sizes, colors, and...even species!"

"Really? That is...quite intriguing," Avira replied thoughtfully. She jumped in surprise when a strange creature appeared before her; it reminded her of the strange enemy that had appeared in her world after Tron went missing. She immediately went to grab a disc from her back before realizing her discs were no longer there.

The stouter, white creature that claimed to be a User used his staff to ward it off, and Avira used her defense mechanism to defeat the other three. The more human-looking User let out a whistle, shaking her head. "I'm jealous. That's some power you got there, Avira!"

"Thank you, but it is merely my defense mechanism. I was born with the ability. ...Do you have a name you wish to be called as well, User?"

"Call me Yuffie!" she declared, holding out a hand. Avira blinked at it before shaking it, pleased to see the Users did something the Programs often did as well.

"Very well, Yuffie. And what about you?" she asked the two strange creatures.

"Goofy!"

"Donald!"

She nodded quickly. "What queer names you Users have...I will have no problem remembering them, nonetheless. I have a rather good memory," she commented as they walked into a room that was much different from the room they had been in before.

Where the one with the computer system in it had looked more modern and technological, like the System did, this one looked more...human. That was the only word to describe the objects in the room, such as a desk and chair.

She was familiar with such objects; Tron had done his best to educate even Programs such as herself who lived in the Grid in ways of Users. She had tried to read a book once, but found it difficult due to the lack of codes submitted within the text, and soon forgot about the book.

Avira followed the three Users as the one called Yuffie continued to talk to Donald and Goofy about "how things have been" since they were last in "Hollow Bastion".

She recalled the system's formal name being Hollow Bastion OS, so she supposed Hollow Bastion was the name of the town the Users in this world resided in.

She noticed that on quite a few occasions during Yuffie's story, she switched between calling the town "Hollow Bastion" and "Radiant Garden", which was quite confusing.

Avira did her best to keep up with the three Users, staring in awe at this Hollow Bastion/Radiant Garden city as they walked through it.

It was designed like nothing she had ever seen before; it reminded her of the castle she had seen on the cover of the book Tron had allowed her to attempt to read. _I wish now that I had read it..._

She shook away that thought, walking quickly to catch up to the Users.

* * *

_**FIVE ****MINUTES LATER...**_

Merlin immediately grinned upon their arrival, moving to welcome them. "Welcome back! Any luck so far, m'dear?" he asked, looking to Kiera.

"As a matter of fact - well...yes and no," she said thoughtfully as Avira and the others caught up.

Merlin adjusted his glasses, peering up at Avira. Which reminded Kiera of how tall and all-around statuesque her fellow Gatekeeper looked, making her depressed all over again.

"Ah! Another Gatekeeper, I presume?"

They all nodded, and Riku spoke up this time. "It looks like she's my Gatekeeper, but...she can't 'sit' me."

"Can't what?"

"She can't use commands on Riku like I can with Sora," Kiera elaborated, and Merlin nodded quickly.

"Ah, that doesn't surprise me."

"Why not?" they all asked, Avira included.

He smiled at them before looking to Avira. "M'dear, do you have a power you already know about? Something destructive, I imagine."

Avira nodded slowly. "If you are referring to my defense mechanism, then...yes, it is quite destructive."

"Not to mention badass," Kiera grumbled, making Sora smirk.

"You really _are_ jealous of that, aren't you?" he asked as Avira demonstrated her power to Merlin.

"Yeah, but at least I can still kick your ass without lifting a finger to do it," Kiera replied. Now she was the one smirking as Sora grumbled under his breath.

"Just as I thought. Do you have a name?"

"My name is Avira. You are a User as well, yes?"

"You can call me Merlin, m'dear." He then turned to look at the others, who were still extremely confused.

"Don't you see?"

"...No, I honestly don't," Kiera replied, making the others nod in agreement.

He sighed. "It's my theory that Gatekeepers are each representations of a theme that relates to the Keyblade Wielders they are destined to protect – and both Kiera and Avira are proof of that. Kiera can give commands to Sora, whereas Avira cannot do the same with Riku. Yet Avira has a destructive power that Kiera doesn't.

"Riku, you have walked among darkness for the sake of light – a conflict that still affects you today, I'm sure. To match the distress such an ordeal brought into your heart, Avira has been given a power that can do just as much harm as it can good. While she undoubtedly has numerous abilities that'll begin to appear the longer she's with you, Riku, this dark ability combined with the fact that she too now walks in a world quite different from her own for the sake of the Users she fights for gives her an understanding of you that others might lack."

He paused as they all nodded slowly, trying their best to absorb all he'd just said. "...What makes her power so dark?" Kairi wondered.

"Yeah, it just kinda looks cool to me," Kiera added.

"Because it destroys anything it touches, but it's currently her strongest means of attack. Meaning that if she were to ever lose control of her emotions or control over her power itself, she could destroy anything in sight. Much like your Blind Rage, Kiera."

_Merlin knows about that? Then again, he IS a wizard...they know pretty much everything, I guess..._

"That still doesn't explain why Kiera can do pretty much whatever she wants to me," Sora commented with a slight grumble, making Merlin chuckle.

"That one's easy. Sora, you have a very strong sense of justice, and you trust and protect people you barely know. You also forgive very easily, sometimes against better judgment. Kiera acts as a force to balance you out; I highly doubt she trusts just anyone, especially not after the conflict she faced with her father," he explained, causing Kiera to wince at the mention of her dad. ...If you could even call him that.

"Her control over you gives her a way to protect you in her own way, a way beyond the advice or intervention of a friend – one that you have no choice but to heed, which is a _very_ good thing considering how thick-headed you can be," he commented.

Riku smirked as Sora's temple throbbed. "Merlin's got a point, you know. You can be a real idiot sometimes."

"Hey, that's not true!"

"It...kinda is," Kairi commented, and Kiera nodded in agreement. Sora just huffed and crossed his arms, and Merlin shook his head with a laugh.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of, Sora, it's just the way you are! Anyway, Kiera's abilities to summon items at will, to command you, to teleport herself and others to safer areas, it all relays back to one simple idea. You spend so much of your energy protecting and helping others that you forget to do the same to yourself. Kiera acts as a force to protect and help you when you refuse it from everyone else," he concluded, nodding sagely.

Kiera grinned. "Well, when he puts it like that, I sound pretty awesome, huh Sora?"

"Yeah. But then I remember he's talking about you, and it all comes flooding back to me. All the sits, all the useless weapons, all the stupid decisions..."

"SIT!"

_**THUD.**_

"SEE? THAT'S WHAT I MEAN, KIERA, THAT RIGHT THERE!"

"DON'T MAKE ME GET OUT MY FRYING PAN AGAIN!"

Merlin, Yuffie, and Leon sighed heavily, sweatdropping. "They haven't changed at all," Merlin commented.

"If anything, they've gotten worse," Leon agreed, and Yuffie nodded.

"Trust us, they have!" Donald commented.

"You know what they need?" Yuffie said suddenly as the two continued to bicker.

"A miracle?" Riku offered.

"Hobbies?" Kairi suggested.

"Alone time!" Goofy declared.

"No, Goofy, to get the sense slapped into them," Donald disagreed.

"Logic," Avira commented simply.

"Those electronic collars that shock the wearer?" Leon asked, making everyone sweatdrop.

"No..." Yuffie said slowly. "Couples counseling. Y'know, like they have for fighting married couples? Only in this case, for a Gatekeeper and Keyblader. I think it'd be an immense success."

"You get right to work on that," Leon suggested, "and if it gets worse, I'm sure the others won't hesitate to send them to some counseling."

The other four nodded quickly, and Riku accepted the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee card Yuffie handed him. "Don't forget to let us know in advance! I'll have to stock up on lots of tape and weapons beforehand..."

Kairi smiled at Yuffie as she handed her a card as well. "Thank you!" She peered down at the card and noticed "Radiant Garden" was written underneath "Hollow Bastion", which was crossed out. "Radiant Garden...that sounds so familiar..."

"Been here before?" Riku asked.

She shook her head. "No, I don't think so...Huh. Guess I'll figure it out later," she commented, tucking the card in her pocket.

Sora suddenly stopped shouting at Kiera mid-sentence to turn and look at them. "Oh! Wait! We unlocked a world when we saw Tron, didn't we?"

"I think so," Kiera replied, and Kairi and Donald nodded.

"Sure did."

"We better get going, then!" Goofy declared, and they all said their goodbyes.

"Remember, Riku, call in advance!" Yuffie called out as they left, and Leon rolled his eyes.

"He will, Yuffie, calm down."

"But now I'm really excited for this to actually happen!"

"You won't when they yell about how annoying the other one is for a good five minutes..."

* * *

Once on the ship, Kairi grinned at Avira's awed expression. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"'Cool'..."

"Means it's good. Satisfactory. Pleasing. Appealing," Kiera offered, reading out of a thesaurus she'd summoned.

"You really needed a _thesaurus_ to explain that? That's just sad," Sora commented, earning him a whack upside the head with said thesaurus.

"Riku, why don't you show Avira around?" Kiera suggested, ignoring Sora's grumbling.

Riku looked to Avira, smiling. "How about it?"

She shrugged. "I suppose that would be...'cool'," she said slowly, making Kiera grin as they walked off.

"Huh. This'll go well. They look like they get along a lot better than we EVER did," she commented to Sora as she made the thesaurus disappear and summoned a book instead, sitting down on a couch she'd summoned on their last quest and crossing her legs.

"Huh? What're you talking about, we get along fine!"

Kairi and Goofy spit out their drinks, Donald started quacking with laughter, and Kiera looked up from her book with a "Get real" expression. "That was a good one," she deadpanned, looking back down at her book and turning a page.

"We do! I'm serious!" he added as the others laughed even harder. She attempted to ignore him, not looking up from her book. "Don't we, Kiera? I mean, honestly, we may fight sometimes –"

"Sometimes?" Kairi repeated with a giggle. "You two are _constantly_ at each other's throats!"

"It's true, Sora!" Donald added, and Goofy nodded. Kairi continued to laugh as she went to another room, and Goofy continued steering the ship towards the next world. Donald waddled to the bathroom, muttering something about how Sora shouldn't make him laugh so much.

"...Oh, c'mon Kiera. We get along good, right?"

"Mm."

"Don't 'mm' me, that could mean yes OR no."

"Mm."

"Kieraaa!" he whined, plopping down next to her and causing her to be jostled a little. Her temple throbbed, and she gave him a sideways look, fingers poised to turn a page.

"WHAT."

"Wow, you read fast. Anyway, c'mon, admit it. We get along good."

"Sora, Kairi's right. We fight all the time, and it's only gotten worse since I was gone for so long."

"Well, that's just what we do! Besides the fighting, we get along though. Right?"

"Sure, Sora. Sure we do."

He sighed exasperatedly as she turned the page. "What's so great about that book, anyway?"

"It's not that good, actually, I just have to read it for English," she muttered absentmindedly, and he gave her a skeptical look.

"Kiera, don't you think it's kinda...unlikely...that you'll be finishing your English class any time soon? I mean, our last quest took months, and this one's supposed to be even longer!"

"How do _you_ know how long it's gonna take?" she snapped. "No one knows, because we don't even know what we're up against – well, besides the Heartless. It could take a matter of weeks!"

"...Kiera?"

"What, Sora, WHAT?"

"What're you gonna do when we finish the quest this time?"

She sighed tiredly, closing her book before throwing it and making it disappear before it even hit the floor. "You know exactly what I'm gonna do when we finish, Sora. I'm going back home," she replied, crossing her arms and glaring over and up at him. Of course, this time she knew better than to look directly in his eyes when looking at him, or else she'd be screwed.

He groaned. "But Kieraaaa..."

"Don't you 'But Kieraaaa' me! I've got a _job_ and _people_ to get back to!"

"Yeah, and _Max_," he muttered, making her agitation turn to amusement.

"Yeah, him too. ...Is that _jealousy_ I detect, Sora?"

"Hell no! It's relief that I'm not Max. I couldn't _stand_ _you_ long enough to date you."

"Oh? But I thought you said we got along _so well_," she teased, smirking as he glared at her.

"You-You know what I mean!"

"Baahh, I'm just messing with you," Kiera replied, waving him off as she stood up and headed for the cot room. "After all, you've got Kairi. You'll be just fine without me," she continued in that sly tone of hers, giggling a little when she heard him sigh exasperatedly.

"I hate her sometimes..."

"Hate you too, Sora," she replied cheerfully before shutting the door. She was in desperate need of a nap.

* * *

_**LATER****...**_

Kiera was awakened by falling flat on her face when the ship lurched. She sat up with a hiss, rubbing her eyes and trying to get rid of her groggy vision.

"I was just resting my eyes!" she protested as Kairi pulled her up by her hand, and the latter rolled her eyes.

"C'mon, Kiera, I think they said something about a pirate ship!"

That immediately got her attention, and she ended up dragging Kairi towards the escape hatch. When she jumped down, both she and Kairi landed on top of Riku.

"OW!"

"Sorry," Kiera groaned, wedged between the two of them. "I heard something about a pirate ship and got excited."

"Of course you did, your beloved's around here somewhere," Sora grumbled, making Kairi sweatdrop.

"Your beloved, Kiera?" she asked as Riku helped her up.

"Thanks," Kiera commented, brushing herself off and looking around for any sign of Jack Sparrow. "Surely you mean my favorite pirate captain in the world, right Sora?"

"Yeah, that's the one," he replied with an eyeroll, looking around as well. "Speaking of which...where the hell is he?"

"Would he be the one those two suspicious...oddly-dressed Users are carrying?" Avira asked, pointing behind the others. They all turned around to see two men carrying none other than Jack Sparrow, a woman walking beside them as they boarded a ship.

"Holy crap! Nice one, Avira," Kiera praised before running to follow them.

"Kiera, wait up! They could be dangerous!" Sora shouted, running after her.

"...Such flawed logic she has, that...'Kiera'. How has she survived thus far?" Avira asked Riku, who shrugged.

"Sheer dumb luck, for the most part. We better go after them, though..."

Kairi nodded. "Yeah, before they get themselves into more trouble. ...You know, we _really_ don't blend in very well around here," she commented suddenly, and the other four looked down at themselves. They were still in their usual clothes, while people were running around in what could only be described as pirate garb.

Riku sighed heavily as he ducked and weaved his way through the heavy flow of people passing by. "We better just hope no one notices."

"Chyeah, dream on," Kairi muttered, following them.

"...Goofy?"

"Yes, Donald?"

"I'm starting to think we should watch the Gummi Ship. ...Before someone steals it."

"Are you just makin' that up so we don't have to help Sora and the others?" Goofy asked suspiciously, and Donald quacked indignantly.

"I MOST CERTAINLY AM NOT!"

"...Shucks, Donald, I was just askin'."


	9. Please, Please, PLEASE Read This

You guys.

I cannot. Even. Begin. To tell you all. How deeply sorry I am.

Those of you who were PM'ing me regularly, I think you last heard I had strep throat. I got sick with a stomach virus not long after, at least, that's what I thought it was.

It wasn't. I was sick for almost a month, and after lots of blood work and shots and an ultrasound, my doctor discovered I had literally _no_ Vitamin D and _no_ Vitamin B- namely B12. This equals no energy, very poor health, brittle nails, not being able to keep food down, lots of fun stuff. This was back in September of 2011, and I _still_ have to take 4000 units of Vitamin D a day and get B12 shots monthly. ...Speaking of which, I'm exhausted as I'm typing this and in need of my latest shot. But my levels are slowly going back to normal. They're almost halfway to the minimum range a normal person's level should be now.

However, I got sick with some of the same symptoms later on in the year, around November or something, I think. Couldn't keep food down, couldn't do much of anything, and when I did eat, my stomach would swell. THAT was new. And I'm not talking Food Baby Swelling, I mean "Oh my dear Aizen, it looks like I've swallowed a tire" swelling. Not to mention I had gained weight. ...Like...twenty pounds _easy_ kind of weight over the course of a few months. Which made no sense because, like I said, I wasn't eating much of anything. So, after yet MORE blood drawn, shots given, and a gallbladder test with IVs galore - did I mention I used to have a fear of needles until this April after, what, the twenty-eighth fuckin' blood test? - it took two other doctors to discover I had a motility issue. Which basically means something was causing a backup in my intestines and nothing was exiting my system as quick as it should have been.

So I was put on these little pink pills to take before meals three times a day, which I'm still on. My pill list has gone down exponentially as of recently, but it's still a pretty fucking huge list.

On a more personal note, I went through a death of a really close family member, a new relationship that damn near sucked the life out of me as he slowly turned out to be...for lack of a more flattering term...manipulative bastard from whom I tolerated things I would _never_ have tolerated before and never will again, AND most importantly, I was trying desperately to keep my grades up.

Ya'all, I am genuinely amazed I passed Sophomore year with the grades I did. After missing over 30 days of school, my lowest semester average was an 81. It was even _more_ pressure because my school's grade system is a bit more challenging compared to others nearby, not to mention my absences made me have to take _every_ exam (which counts for a fourth of our final grade), and I had an _extremely_ difficult college-level exam for AP World History that even a close college friend of mine thought was sent from hell.

Those of you who watch my deviantART account - for whatever reason - also know I've been posting stuff on there and managing Ask Accounts with almost no problem. ...That takes a lot less effort than it does continuing stories. Answering people's questions and drawings were methods of keeping me sane and from being overwhelmed with everything, and I'm not trying to excuse not talking to anyone on here or even giving you guys an update for so long, but it's the only thing I can provide as an explanation for why I was keeping things up there and not here.

That and I was wanting to write an Author's Note when I had some updated chapters and possibly the first chapter to a Bleach sequel ready to post for you guys. Or at least under the works. But I felt worse and worse the longer I put this note off, and I have to admit to you all, I have nothing written so far.

I wouldn't call it Writer's Block, just Exhausted Writing Mind. So many essays, projects, studying - it all made answering questions and drawing a welcome change. And now I have a shitload of Summer Work to do, but I have plenty of time to do it. After I get at least a third of that out of the way - which I'm close to doing, actually - I hope to get back into writing again.

I miss writing. I miss talking to you all. I really do.

I must warn you though, my writing has likely changed some. I've grown more, mentally and emotionally, and I honestly don't know whether or not that's a good thing. And I'm not sure I'll be updating regularly, I'm scared I'll get sick again, I'm scared to not stay on top of my schoolwork.

I'm one of the best slackers around, but I can't pull off _that_ good of a balancing act. And if I want to become a psychologist one day - which I do, I really truly do, and that "one day" is getting even closer now that I'm a Junior - I need to put my academics first.

Also, I didn't have a laptop until Spring break. So I didn't have THAT many options, see? And once I had it, I used it _almost_ exclusively for school; there were the occasional deviantART chat antics and Skype conversations to clear my mind.

Because if I sat here and typed down that I did nothing but schoolwork on this thing, my laptop would likely get so pissed at that bold-faced lie that it would fry itself.

Now that I think about it after rambling on this Author's Note, I think the main reason I haven't written anything is because I've been almost scared to. I didn't want to write a new chapter here and there, get everyone excited, and then disappear off the face of the earth again.

But I promise you all right now, I'm gonna do my best to get back in the swing of things. This was my most difficult year health-wise, and you honestly have no idea how much it's affected me. Physically and mentally. And how stressed I've been. And am. But I can't wait to get back to my stories again, and break out of my old habits writing-wise: firstly with fixing my habit of making redhead OCs. I honestly don't even know how that came about, _yes_ I have red hair, and I _do_ have a couple close friends with even MORE red hair. And the OCs were all of the same make-up, but to be honest, it wasn't even wish fulfillment. I didn't imagine these characters as myself, I didn't pair them with people I'd want to be paired with. They just appeared that way in my brain, I wrote down the first chapter, and from there my fingers took care of the rest. Every twist and turn surprised me as much as it surprised you to read it, and I've laughed and raged just like some of you might have. I think it was more of a familiar territory kind of thing. But you can only do so much of that before accepting your mistakes and fixing them, right?

And I'm going to work on my character development, too. You can't make your OCs well-rounded and then just kind of go halfway with everyone else. Like I said, I've grown a bit. And dammit, after the long wait I've put ya'all through, you deserve some originality. ...Well, more originality.

On that note, I'll end this rambling note and just hope you guys can forgive me. Feel free to leave a review or PM me saying whatever you'd like, I wouldn't be surprised if some of you are angry. Or if you just wanna say hi and tell me how things have been for YOU since I've been gone. I really do care about people who read the random stuff I put on here, and I remember most if not _**all** _of my reviewers, I swear on my Chips A'Hoy. ...Which I hold very dear to my heart, just saying.

And please, take care of yourselves. Exercise at least a little regularly, go out and enjoy the sun, enjoy your friends, enjoy life! I've been cooped up all year, and lemme tell ya, that'll get you to long for the outdoors like nothing else. I've also discovered that even I, the great Mandy, can perceive people through rose-colored glasses. Be aware of exactly who it is you're dealing with, and if your girlfriend or boyfriend - or anyone- gives off red flags, no matter how small they are, no matter how badly you want to just overlook them, ponder them. Think carefully about them. And don't be afraid to break things off. I wasn't, and though it was hard afterward, I can't imagine how much worse it would have been if I'd let it keep going.

Just...be careful, you guys. I care about you all.

Glad to be back,

Mandy~


	10. The Stars and the Sea

_**/ Wow. Long-ass break, huh? There's... so much that's happened, I mean hell, it's been nearly a year. But the main thing is that over the year I. Have. Grown. So I apologize if my writing has grown and it's not as enjoyable, but I just can't bring myself to write the way I had before. In some ways, yeah, it's similar. But expect changes in personality and... hopefully they're for the better, as I believe them to be.**_

_**/-Oh! One physical change - Kiera's eyes are green, not brown. Long story.**_

_**/I must also warn you, this is my senior year in high school. Not only that, but I have a new puppy at home and a boyfriend who, because of his job and my school, our schedules will both be out of whack. Please be patient.  
**_

_**/... Also. I really apologize if there's a lot of grammar mistakes or things in here that just plain don't make sense. I slammed my middle finger in a door a few days ago, and I now have a huge-ass splint on it. **_

_**/On my dominant hand and writing hand.**_

_**/And they didn't give me painkillers.**_

_**/So... Yeah. Ouch. ... I know usually the characters talk in this part before every chapter, and yes, I'm still gonna do that. Just because I've matured doesn't mean I'm a stick in the mud - I'm just trying to get back in the swing of things. That'll pick back up within the next few chapters. **_

_**/ I just wanna go ahead and thank those of you that have waited patiently for this long-awaited update and I just hope it doesn't disappoint. I really do. Expect more, I p-r-o-m-i-s-e. 3**_

* * *

The deck was, as one could expect aboard a pirate vessel, organized chaos. Kiera could hear Sora's grunts and occasional sighs of exasperation; it seemed he wasn't quite as good when it came to ducking and weaving. After a bit of effort, he finally managed to catch up to her, extending a hand to grip her by the shoulder.

"Jeez, Kiera! You act like you know exactly where you're going."

"It's not so hard to figure out," she replied with an almost giddy laugh, one elbow at the ready as men continued to dodge the two left and right, practically scrambling to get their orders completed. "But I wonder where they took Jack off to..."

"Why was he passed out in the _first_ place?"

"Even better question. My bet's on rum."

"Rum?"

"... Y'know. Like the drink." Sora only shook his head in confusion, and Kiera's eyes were wide with excitement all over again. "Aaah, Sora. Still _so much_ you don't know," she commented smugly, standing up on her tiptoes a bit to pat his head in a superior sort of way; she knew it irritated him to no end when she knew more than he did.

"Yeah yeah, I'll figure it out _myself_," he replied in a sort of kidlike grumble, and his auburn-haired companion couldn't help but smile a bit fondly. It seemed like things hadn't changed so much after all.

Before much else could be done, Avira and Riku came running down the steps to catch up with them, almost like parents on their way to scold their unruly children for running ahead. This, of course, resulted in Avira stopping briefly to look around, finding her surroundings growing stranger with every step she took with these Users - causing a domino effect in the process, Goofy being the last to take a tumble.

Kiera and Sora gawked as they all fell one by one on top of each other, the quarters below deck finally growing silent - it seemed they were the only ones still below for now. The silence only lasted for a few moments, however, as they all burst out with laughter soon after while helping each other back to their feet.

Avira politely refused Kairi's help, brushing her clothing off as her normally pale skin began to flush profusely.

"... Any luck?" Riku asked, folding his arms under his chest as their eyes slowly adjusted to the dim lighting. Kiera and Sora shook their heads slowly in reply, and everyone's shoulders slumped somewhat with soft sighs of disappointment.

… Well, all but Avira's, of course. Her straight posture hadn't suffered in the slightest since Kiera had first encountered her. The latter scratched thoughtfully at her chin, glancing around the close quarters as well. A collective cringe ran through the group of travelers as the cracking of a whip resounded up above, the groaning of men working to their fullest serving as their ambiance.

"Well, since we can't find Jack, what're we gonna do?" Donald asked, basically vocalizing the question all of them were thinking. Kiera lowered her hand to rest on her hip, glancing up at the head of the rickety steps.

"Guess we'll have to work like the rest."

"Wha- Why?"

"Well, I mean, think about it. Wouldn't it be _kiiiinda_ suspicious if we were all standing around here not really doing anything? They might start asking questions and realize we're not supposed to be here," Kairi pointed out, and Kiera quickly followed that up with a nod and hushed whisper:

"- And then, they could make us _walk the plank._"

The others made their own respective noises of surprise, eyes widening - all but Avira, who didn't quite understand what kind of nautical terminology the second-shortest User could possibly be using.

"... Jump off the ship and drown or get eaten by sharks, or some other bad shit," Kiera added for her sake, in which the program-out-of-programming responded accordingly.

"... It pains me to say it every time, but Kiera's right," Sora commented with a sigh of defeat, prompting Kiera to stick her tongue out at him in an extremely mature manner.

"That, or we just make it look like we're doing something."

"-Hey, Riku, we can finally put all that reading up on sailing to use, right?" Sora pointed out, folding his arms behind his head with a wide grin as he completely ignored his Gatekeeper's immaturity - that jackass.

That got both Riku and Kairi in much brighter moods, the former nodding in agreement as he chuckled under his breath.

"Yeah, good thinking."

* * *

Once the ship was free to set sail, the crew was temporarily relieved of duty. After all, it'd be kinda hard for them to do more back-breaking work at dawn without sleep and some rum on their bellies. Like most of the crewmen, Kiera's companions had found beds or extra comfy bits of floor and passed right out – she, however, found herself wandering the ship's deck up above.

Leaning against the railing, she inhaled deeply to commit the salty air to her memory. The thumping of well-worn sneakers soon caught her ears; it seemed she wasn't the only one who couldn't sleep. Kairi gave her a polite smile, ruffling the back of her own hair as she moved to lean against the railing next to her.

A somewhat-awkward silence followed, and Kiera was determined not to break it. It was _fine_ to say stupid things around _Sora_, because he was used to it; when it came to Kairi, it was times like these that - despite the stupid things she'd said the first time she got dragged along Sora's adventures - she became very aware that there was a lot she didn't know about his best friend. … About either of his best friends, really.

There was something wrong with that.

"... I guess it _always_ smells like this where you live, huh?" she finally asked with a clear of the throat, keeping her eyes focused on the bobbing waves she could only faintly see in the darkness.

Kairi seemed thankful for the break in silence, her voice rushing out in a relieved sigh. "Yeah, the Islands always smell like this... Kinda salty?" she suggested before laughing a little under her breath. "I don't pay much attention to the smell - since I used to smell it almost every day."

"That makes sense." Another pause, before Kiera found herself saying, "My dad took me to see the ocean once. It smelled just like this... I mean, _duh_, of course it did, but... I never forgot the smell."

The mention of her father only made her cringe, but it was too late to avoid the still-stinging wound of a topic; Kairi's interest was piqued. Which, it should have been - Kiera doubted Sora had told her much about _herself_, either.

"Your dad, huh? Was it fun?" she asked with all the interest and cheerfulness that the Princess of Heart was normally associated with.

The fellow redhead felt a smile tug at her lips, even if the topic was still such a bitter one. "Heh... Actually? Yeah, it was. See- as a scientist, he was about as curious as I was. And... I love the sea, always have. So one year, a week before my birthday, he gave me an early birthday present: a trip to the sea. We drove down to the Gulf, spent a whole day there... Just me and him. It... It was a good day," she murmured with a small nod of confirmation, managing to keep that infernal quiver of emotion out of her voice that so often gave her away.

There was no need to ruin what small potential friendship was growing between her and Kairi with her own sob story.

"Wow, that sounds so nice...! I still have the best present my dad's ever given me," Kairi replied in an excited hurry, reaching into a zipper-pocket of her light pink dress to pull out a tiny star-shaped charm. Kiera turned away from the railing to lean forward a bit, inspecting the charm with genuine interest.

"It's... shiny," she offered, somewhat reminded of the Paopu fruit Sora had offered her that last day.

"I've _always_ had this fascination with stars... Kinda like how you feel about the sea," she explained with a smile, blue eyes crinkling warmly as she glanced over at Kiera. "Because just like the sea, the stars seem to stretch on forever... And no matter where you are, we're all looking at the same stars."

Kiera couldn't help but return the smile - after all, that was probably some of the most meaningful shit she'd ever heard. Now she felt like laughing at her stupidity, for feeling so determined to outdo Kairi's writing in the letter Sora had received.

"Guess we... Have a bit more in common than we thought, huh?"

* * *

"Kiera. Ki_eeee_-ra. a. Ki-er-_aaaaa_- _**Kiera**_, wake **U**-"

"- HI-YAH!"

"-_OW_-!"

The sounds of a tussle promptly ensued, the only thing able to drown out Kiera's thoroughly displeased shouting being the man seemingly in charge of the crewmen barking orders and dealing with those who didn't comply.

"... She sounds as if she's being derezzed," Avira noted in hushed tones to Donald, seemingly one of the less beat-around-the-bush sort of Users. He nodded sagely, pretending to liberally scrub the deck with a brush.

"Sounds to me like Sora got stuck with waking her up again."

"We drew straws."

"By straws, Riku means our Keyblades."

"_Sora's_ happened to be shorter."

"I still think mine was shorter, but... Sora _said_ he didn't mind," Kairi concluded meekly, doing her best to stifle a smile – she was doing similar to Donald, while Riku sat nearby on a barrel and attempted to peel potatoes. Avira was watching intently, hair tucked underneath a hat she had found abandoned below deck - she wasn't used to all this sunlight, after all, and her nearly comical attempts to block the sun with her hands would have definitely drawn more attention to the travelers than they needed. They had already noticed the difference in atmospheres compared to Jack's ship, the _Black Pearl_... This one was much more intimidating, dangerous even...

A few moments later, the not-quite-so-dynamic duo ascended the stairs from below deck, Sora rubbing his cheek as an extremely groggy and displeased Kiera tried to untangle a large knot in her hair.

It was pretty obvious he had to go to great lengths to get her fully conscious, and it was likely her fist that had made contact with his cheek.

Kiera was usually quite the morning person, at least not quite this _homicidal_, but two unfortunate factors had collided the previous night: a messed-up schedule compared to the one her new job had provided her with, and the constant rocking of the ocean.

Everyone found it to be a _very_ good idea to go about their business with no questions asked, Riku whistling some random tune under his breath. The "silence" - used lightly since they were, in fact, on a ship having orders barked around them- was broken by Goofy as he came slipping and sliding by; he had gotten his feet stuck in two buckets of water, one of which having been in use by Donald.

This resulted in Donald running after Goofy to obtain his bucket, Kairi running after Donald to try and mediate, and Sora running after Kairi due to overall personality on his part. Avira had been so focused on the potato-peeling process that she hadn't even noticed, so Kiera was left to gawk groggily and Riku to shake his head with a deadpan expression.

"Blending in on a pirate ship. Like _that_ was gonna happen."

"I did my best, Potato Boy."

This, however, ended up working to their advantage - Goofy happened to crash into one of the most confused pirates in the Caribbean, Captain Jack Sparrow himself.


End file.
